Weak and Powerless
by Elf
Summary: D is hired by a small town to dispose of a sexualy sadistic vampire, unfortunately, there's another gunning for his target.
1. Prologue: The Exquisite Fiend

Disclaimer: Vampire Hunter D is the property of its creator, Hideuki Kikuchi. I do not own D or any of the characters related to the novel series.  
  
Warning: This story is rated R for language, violence, adult situations, and sexual content. Reader digression is advised.  
  
Weak and Powerless  
Prologue: The Exquisite Fiend  
By: Elf  
  
Praying to stay in your arms  
Just until I can die a little longer  
Saviors and saints  
Devils and demons alike  
She'll eat you alive  
Puscifer : REV 22:20  
  
The teenager's body trembled in a mixture of fear and anticipation. A slim, leather clad hand ran up and down his nude chest. Hooded eyes like garnets watched him as a cattish smile curved ripe, full lips that promised ecstacy. He gasped as her hand wandered lower, toying with his hardening member.  
  
He leaned his head against his suspended arms as he was fondled by the leather clad goddess. He started to gasp for air as he started to lose his grip with reality. All he could think about was the intense sensations of it, the leather clad hand, the cool lips planting feather light kisses down his chest, suckling him.  
  
He could smell roses. Her intense red curls ticked his nose and were filled with the scent of roses. He gasped as the pleasure intensified, pulling on his bonds.  
  
His feet curled upwards from the stone floor as he cried out.  
  
He was pierced by something sharp and brutal against his thigh.  
  
The pleasure became pain and he screamed, thrashing against the manacles that held him. He could feel her soft, cool mouth sucking at him hard. He could feel the pain as his blood was drawn unwillingly from his body. His screams died into coherent whimpers as she lifted away from him.  
  
Her perfect lips were stained with his blood. A trickle of it marred the marble paleness of her skin. A pointed, catlike tongue snaked out from her mouth and licked the tiny rivulet of crimson.  
  
The boy felt hot tears sting his eyes. He whispered, "Please don't kill me."  
  
She stood up, brushing one red curl from her face as she observed him with those hungry garnet eyes. She pressed up against him, sleek leather pressing against his cold, nude flesh. She arched against him, the sensation making his body stir once again. He whimpered.  
  
She stroked his smooth cheek with her gloved fingers. She purred, "Oh, my poor, pretty little toy. I'm sorry to have such a pretty new toy already broken. I'd thought you wouldn't break easily, but alas, you have, my toy."  
  
The teen sobbed, bowing his head and awaiting his fate.  
  
He was helpless against her deadly beauty and part of him still ached for her. He had come to her castle, wanting to destroy the Lady Circe Delarosa. Instead, she had captured him, killed his friends, and kept him for her amusement.  
  
Circe smiled at him and purred, "Sweet toy, don't worry. I'm not going to throw you away. Yet. I still haven't finished playing with you."  
  
She smiled sweetly at him, baring her pearlescent fangs.  
  
The teen began to sob, praying that she would kill him quickly.  
  
****** The town of Lichpin on the Eastern Frontier had enough of its vampire problem. Mainly, the notorious noble Lady Circe Delarosa.  
  
Circe was notorious for stealing the strongest and most attractive villagers to use for her sadistic games. The poor people would be sent back in neat coffins, already dead. Her followers were known to deflower young virgins, male and female alike, simply because it amused them.  
  
The town's people have had enough of her sadistic sexual games and gathered.  
  
Mayor Shannon Montgomery stood before her townspeople. They were in a roar, suggesting what they should do. Half of them suggested that they hire the Markus brothers before another stated that they had been wiped out by Meier Link. Then they suggested going up to Circe's castle and burning it to the ground. That same person snorted and said that they'd be killed by Circe and her minions if they tried something that moronic.  
  
Shannon sighed, rubbing her temples. She banged her gavel on her podium till it rang out through the room's silence. When she was satisfied that she had their attention, she cleared her throat.  
  
"Hiring the Markus Brothers was an excellent idea, but, as Mr. Moran stated, they're dead. However, there are other hunters we can hire, ones whose reputations were even better than the Marcus Brothers'," Shannon stated.  
  
Moran shouted, "Who the hell are you talking about, Shannon?"  
  
"D, the dhampire hunter," Shannon answered with a satisfied grin.  
  
Pandemonium raged out around the young mayor. Someone shouted, "There's no way in hell that we'd have a half-breed come to our town!"  
  
"He'd probably be as bad as Circe, or worse! Daylight won't stop a fucking half-breed!" another raged, shaking his fist at her.  
  
Shannon banged her gavel again and snapped, "I'd rather have a dhampire with his reputation in my town than that blood sucking nymphomaniac bitch! Now, if you don't like it, that's fine. I'll put a bounty on her head as well, but I am hiring D."  
  
"You can't do that," a young woman wailed.  
  
Shannon smirked and replied, "I'd like to see you try and stop me. In fact, he should be here at anytime now."  
  
The townspeople gasped as the doors to the town hall opened. They went silent as a tall figure garbed all in black swept into the room. A large brim hat covered most of the man's pale, pointed face. Shannon noticed an opal pinned onto the hat that caught the firelight and sparkled with a myriad of colors.  
  
There was a sword almost as tall as the man in black resting on his back. His footsteps were silent on the wood floors as he approached her. She smirked as he approached the podium, his black cape swirling behind him like an angel's wings.  
  
Indeed, he was to be their salvation whether they liked it or not.  
  
"Mayor Montgomery?" he inquired in a deep, quiet monotone. A lovely voice, Shannon realized as he looked at her, the hat no longer obscuring her view.  
  
His face took her breath away. He was beautiful, exquisite: high, sharp cheek bones, pearlescent skin, a pouting mouth, and long lashed sleepy silvery-blue eyes. Black hair waved around his shoulders and tumbled down to his waist. The torchlight caught plum and garnet shimmers in the black mass. However, he had pointed ears, just like a vampire.  
  
Once she was able to speak again, Shannon stated, "You must be D. Welcome to Lichpin, I'm glad to see that you arrived here well enough. And swiftly too, I must add."  
  
D looked up at her with those intense silvery-blue eyes. "You wished to hire me, correct?"  
  
Shannon nodded and stepped down. She said, "Let me direct you to my office and we'll talk business."  
  
D only nodded as he followed the young mayor away from the townspeople.  
  
To Be Continued! 


	2. Chapter One: In Her Thrall

Disclaimer: Vampire Hunter D is the property of its creator, Hideuki Kikuchi. I do not own D or any of the characters related to the novel series.  
  
Warning: This story is rated R for language, violence, adult situations, and sexual content. Reader digression is advised.  
  
Weak and Powerless  
Chapter One: In Her Thrall  
By: Elf  
You would too if the sexy devil caught your eye  
She'll suck you dry  
Soon you'll cry  
To be back in her bosom  
To do it again  
She'll make you weep  
And moan and cry  
Puscifer : REV 22:20  
  
The vampire ran, his feet barely touching the ground as he did. His cold heart was still with terror with each step. Death was upon him and there was nothing he could do about it.  
  
For what was chasing him was no mere mortal or half breed mongrel, but something of his own kind.  
  
She landed right in front of him, her massive weapon of death held easily in her delicate, long fingered hands. Strands of golden hair escaped her tight braid and floated along her pearlescent face. Her eyes gleamed like topazes in the moonlight and a satisfied grin split her soft, perfect mouth.  
  
"Why are you hunting me? We are of the same," he said to her in a cajoling voice, beseeching her to stop.  
  
She chuckled as she leveled her rifle at his chest. She fired it at him and there was no way with all of his powers that he could dodge. One moment he was on his feet and the next he was splayed upon the ground with his life leaking around him as he convulsed in horrible pain.  
  
She knelt over him, close enough that he could have touched her if he wished. Instead, he closed his eyes against her blank, ironically amused expression. He heard her husky voice say, "No, I don't destroy anyone's lives. Plus, I don't look like a reject from the 18th century."  
  
He opened his eyes at her strange matter of speech.  
  
Then she grinned at him, "I gotta make a killing somehow."  
  
With that horrible quip, she raised a machete in her capable hands. He closed his eyes again. He heard the blade whistle down through the air as it reached for its killing blow. The next moment he felt a sharp twinge in his neck, and finally, nothing.  
  
****** She was the prettiest bounty hunter that Sherif Justin Moran had seen. She was tall, athletic but yet curvy enough to be only feminine. She had long golden blond hair that she wore in a tight braid and amber eyes. However, he always found her white skin and slightly pointed ears to be odd.  
  
She threw a head on his desk, still dripping blood.  
  
"I believe that's Lord Rhymer, who has a fifteen million bounty on his head," she said as she leaned against his desk, picking up his letter opener and twirling it between her slender fingers.  
  
Justin grinned at her and replied, "Why, I believe you're right there, little lady. How did you manage to kill him that quickly anyway?"  
  
"With enough high powered ammo, eventually everything dies," she replied with a wicked smile, turning those golden eyes toward him.  
  
He laughed at that as he opened his desk. Inside was a polished ebony box for this occasion. The townspeople and the local landowners had pooled up the reward for Rhymer's death. He handed the box to her. She opened it, inspected it's gleaming gold contents, shut it, and grinned.  
  
"It was nice doing business with you, Sherif," she said as she looked at the other wanted posters in his office.  
  
Justin beamed at her and replied, "The pleasure's all mine, I assure you. That bastard's been trouble ever since he's set up shop here."  
  
"They usually are," she said absently as her eyes locked on one of the posters. Her eyes narrowed and her soft, delicate features turned hard. She leaned closer so she could look at the poster. Justin recognized anger burning in those amber eyes of hers.  
  
He looked over to the poster she was glaring at. It was from Lichpin for a Lady Circe Delarosa, another vampire noble. She was a looker from her poster too: sultry, hooded eyes, a sharp aristocratic profile, high cheek bones, and full, pouting lips. She had curly blood-red hair that she wore pinned upon her head with curls lovingly caressing her face and throat. She was smirking slightly in the painting.  
  
Justin nodded and said, "It's from Lichpin, another noble."  
  
"Thank you, Justin," she said in an odd voice.  
  
He turned back to look at her, but she had disappeared.  
  
He rubbed the back of his neck and stated, "Now that's odd."  
  
****** Mayor Shannon Montgomery was an attractive woman. She was in her late twenties, petite with shiny dark hair that fell to her shoulders and large, hazel eyes. There was a rather gamine appearance to her, belying her position of power.  
  
However, she was a ball busting bitch of the first degree and was proud of it. She had been the sherif before she had been pushed into being mayor. She missed being the sherif, but that had been before Circe had decided to rule over their town. Then the blood sucking witch had the nerve to abduct her people to use as her playthings.  
  
Well, Shannon was going to have to fight fire with fire.  
  
She was sitting at her desk in her office. It was decorated with various photos of her when she had been the sherif, with shorter hair and holding a rifle almost as tall as she was standing along side various townspeople and her younger brother. There were other photos of Donny, her younger brother, winking and grinning at her. There were also sketches of various things that Donny had lovingly rendered for her.  
  
The dhampire had not sat down. Instead, he was silently studying the photos and the drawings. She was unnerved by his presence, and it wasn't for the fact that he was half vampire. It was because he was tall and beautiful and in the same room as she was.  
  
She made note to have Donny meet D simply so the teen could draw him.  
  
D turned toward her, his face still hidden by his hat. All save those sculptured, sensual pouting lips. He asked, "When did Circe arrive?"  
  
"About four years ago. This actually use to be a nice town, the only real trouble we had was the occasional werewolf, but that was it," Shannon answered wistfully, reminded of a simpler time.  
  
He asked, "When did people start disappearing?"  
  
"As soon as her castle was built, about three years ago," Shannon answered with a frown.  
  
D looked at the window at the sunset. Then he turned back toward her. He asked, "How frequent are the disappearings?"  
  
"About once a week, sometimes twice. We get the bodies back in coffins," Shannon broke off, remembering the last teenage boy that had arrived in a coffin, his thighs marked with bite marks from the vampire.  
  
D studied her intensely and asked, "What else?"  
  
"There are bite marks, along the thighs. Some are older than others, as if she's keeping them alive for a while," Shannon answered sadly, looking away.  
  
D explained, "She is keeping them alive. She can gain more feedings if she keeps them alive for extended periods of time. It also keeps her from taking another villager so soon."  
  
Shannon blanched at this new knowledge as D asked, "Anything else?"  
  
She nodded and answered, "Occasionally they have whip marks along their backs and buttocks."  
  
Shannon regained her composure and said, "I'm offering you ten million just to kill her."  
  
"She's a powerful noble, ten million is an insult to most hunters," D replied.  
  
Shannon stiffened with anger as she spat, "I'm sorry, but that's all I can afford! I'm not a landowner or business woman. I'm the mayor that was a sherif."  
  
D looked at her and stated, "I did not say I was declining your offer. I simply said that it would be an insult to most hunters for a vampire of her caliber. I'm not most hunters though, I accept. Someone should have killed her a long time ago."  
  
"So, you've heard of her then?" Shannon asked as she frowned up at him.  
  
D nodded and answered, "She's testing your town as of now. Once she has realized what she can take from it she will and quickly, leaving your townspeople in ruin."  
  
"Then you're going to kill her?" Shannon asked hopefully.  
  
D looked at her levelly with those strange, silvery-blue eyes of his and answered, "I shall try."  
  
As soon as those three words were out of his mouth, the door to Shannon's office burst open.  
  
Shannon snapped, "Damn it, didn't I tell you that I didn't want to be disturbed?" She looked up at the five people who had suddenly barged into her office.  
  
"Frankly, we don't care," a petite blond dressed in a black leather cat suit purred, tossing back her honey-colored locks. There was a coiled whip at her waist and she supported the white skin and pointed ears of a vampire. She smiled at D, displaying fangs.  
  
She purred, "Ooh, he's a pretty one. I'd fuck him in a minute."  
  
"He's the dhampire hunter, D," one of her companions stated in a soft, melodious voice that was like D's except more sinister. He was tall, almost D's height, with straight platinum blond hair and emerald green eyes. He was dressed in a white silk poet's shirt, black leather pants, and a matching black vest. He had pointed ears as well, but Shannon didn't see fangs.  
  
"This does not bode well; she has hired a hunter." This speaker was tall and willowy, dressed in a dark violet velvet gown. She had long burnished chestnut locks and violet eyes. An amethyst crystal hung around her bosom. She looked human.  
  
"I could take him," the second male of the group growled. He had unruly black hair that hung into an angular, handsome face and lemon yellow eyes. He was dressed less elegantly than the others in trackers' garb.  
  
The last member of the group was silent. She was petite as well, dressed in a flowing red silk shirt fashioned like pajamas and black silk pants. She had raven hair that was coiled into a bun and secured with two chop sticks. She had huge, slanted sloe eyes and exotic features, despite her white skin and pointed ears. She had a more serious expression on her face than the others who had begun to leer at Shannon and D.  
  
They were Circe's minions, the Belle Morte: the little blond vampire with the whip was Anne, the green-eyed man was known simply as Swan and was a dhampire who had embraced his vampiric blood line, the woman in violet was Moira, a very powerful witch; the tracker was a werewolf named Ulric, and the Asian vampire Yin-Xi was a living weapon.  
  
D drew his sword. The blade was long, slender, curved and razor sharp. It gleamed in the room's light like quicksilver.  
  
"Maybe he's overcompensating for something," taunted Ulric, throwing his head back to laugh.  
  
Swan idly placed his hands on Anne's shoulders and sighed, "Pathetic, he's serving humans. He's denying his nature."  
  
"Getting laid would probably help that," Anne chuckled.  
  
Moira warned, "Lady Circe would want him first."  
  
"Well, I could have him after she's done with him then," Anne replied, looking D's elegant form over with hungry sky blue eyes.  
  
D looked over at Shannon and commanded in his soft voice, "Step back."  
  
Shannon stepped back to the far wall, watching with wide eyes as D gripped his sword and faced the Belle Morte.  
  
Swan suggested, "Why don't you join us, D? You're denying yourself, you know that. I was once like you, but now I've seen the light."  
  
Anne turned around and they kissed thoroughly, as if a seven foot tall man with a humongous sword wasn't a threat to them. Once the kiss was finished, Anne smirked at D with contentment. Swan was absently fondling her left breast as he looked at D with those uncanny green eyes.  
  
"You chose the easy way out. I cannot do that," D replied as he prepared to strike.  
  
At the moment he pivoted to cleave Swan's gorgeous head off, the door opened once again.  
  
Shannon's heart stopped at the newcomer.  
  
She managed to find her voice to shout, "Donny, get out of here!"  
  
"Oh, look, food," Ulric spun around and grabbed the teenage boy and lifted him off the ground.  
  
Shannon's heart picked up like a jackhammer as Donny's face, a masculine mirror of her handsome features, turned toward her. He asked in a trembling voice, "Shan?"  
  
Shannon screamed, "Put him down, you fucking flea bag!"  
  
D's sword was hovering inches away from Swan's long throat. The other dhampire smirked in satisfaction. He turned toward the werewolf and said, "Good catch, Ulric."  
  
Ulric growled and Donny asked, "Sis?" His hazel eyes were hopelessly wide in his handsome face.  
  
Ulric chuckled, "Tell your lapdog to withdraw and your whelp won't be transforming during the full moon."  
  
Shannon cried, "You wouldn't change him!"  
  
"Oh yeah I would, just because it would bug you bitch," Ulric replied with a wide, toothy grin. His grip tightened on Donny's throat, causing him to choke. Shannon watched with panic.  
  
Anne looked at Shannon hard and snapped, "You put a bounty on our Lady, you bitch. You withdraw it or we'll start slaughtering your precious little town, leaving you last to watch."  
  
"Leaving you to Lady Circe, and when she tires of you, me," Swan added, looking lazily at the curve of the blade at his neck.  
  
Ulric growled, "Tell your freak to let the bird go and I'll give you your brat."  
  
"D, please," Shannon begged, tears welling in her eyes. She felt so helpless as she watched Ulric hold her precious brother. Donny's eyes were watering as well, tears spilling down his baby round cheeks.  
  
D withdrew, lowering his blade and backing up. There was a grim set to his jaw and his once kissable mouth was set into a hard line. Swan smirked and said, "Ulric, drop the brat."  
  
Ulric tossed Donny as if he were a rag doll toward Shannon. Shannon cried out, automatically reaching out to catch her brother. However, D was faster, catching Donny with ease.  
  
"Sis?" Donny pleaded.  
  
Shannon reached out and took her little brother away from D. She held him tightly, tears spilling against Donny's shoulder. Donny was trembling as he returned the embrace.  
  
Moira stated, "You have twenty four hours to recant the bounty and for the hunter to leave town. If you do not comply, we will make good on our threat."  
  
"See ya later, D," Anne giggled, wiggling her fingers at him coquettishly.  
  
Swan looked Shannon over and said in his lyrical voice, "You are a very attractive woman. I hope we'll meet again."  
  
"Fuck you," Shannon growled, her body ridged with anger.  
  
Swan tilted his head as the others sauntered out of the room. "I would hope so," he replied as he followed him. Only Yin-Xi remained.  
  
She gave D a tiny, respectful bow before following the rest of Belle Morte out.  
  
Shannon looked up at D, who was resheathing his sword. She asked, "Can you kill her?"  
  
"I will try," was his answer. He looked at them and asked, "Is your brother all right?"  
  
Donny nodded and asked, "Are you okay, Shan?"  
  
"I'm fine, baby, I'm fine," Shannon answered, hugging her brother.  
  
Donny looked up at D with a childish grin of worship. "So, my sis hired you to kill that bitch?"  
  
"Donovan!" Shannon chided, "Language."  
  
Donny replied, "She is a bitch. You call her that all the time, why can't I?"  
  
Shannon sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.  
  
D nodded in reply to Donny's question.  
  
Donny's grin brightened as he exclaimed, "Cool! Oh man, look at that sword. That is so awesome! What kinda sword is that?"  
  
D looked over his shoulder at the sword and answered, "A high frequency blade."  
  
"Oh, sweet," Donny said in awe.  
  
D looked at Shannon and stated, "Tell me all you know about Belle Morte."  
  
Shannon nodded, sitting down behind her desk again. Donny sat down beside D, looking up at him reverently. Shannon wondered if Donny would be so worshipful if he knew what D was. However, she began to tell him everything she knew.  
  
****** "Oh, the Bondage Lady has a pet dhampire." D was trying to ignore the nasal voice coming from his left hand.  
  
However, the Symbiote living there had other ideas, "I bet that really pisses you off, doesn't it D? And he preys on humans, even better. He's what you're afraid to become, isn't it D?"  
  
"Quiet," D growled softly to the parasite, brushing his left hand against his thigh threateningly. He quickened his pace to the inn that Shannon had reserved a room for him at. She had already apologized for the insults and angry glances that he was going to get.  
  
He had grown use to it in his long and lonely years, but it still stung. He knew that he didn't belong with the humans, but he refused to turn to his father's lineage. He wasn't going to become like Lady Circe or Belle Morte, preying on humans simply because they were weaker.  
  
The Left Hand continued its taunts, "But he's got great taste in women. Did you see how he was sucking that little vampire woman's face? Then he was fondling her right in front of you. Either he's an idiot or has the biggest pair of . . ."  
  
D clinched his left hand into a tight fist, muffling the parasite. He relished the momentary silence as he approached the tiny inn. Piano music was leaking from the inside as well as slightly off-key but enthusiastic singing.  
  
The night breeze blew tendrils of his raven hair around his face. He turned and looked up at the sky. Mainly the moon.  
  
A half moon, I still have some time before it becomes full to deal with Ulric, the dhampire thought as he looked at the silvery sliver in the sky.  
  
He turned back toward the inn and stepped through the swinging doors. The piano skipped a beat and the middle-aged woman singing stopped. All eyes turned toward him as he entered the inn.  
  
D caught whispers of, "It's him, the half breed." "God, he even looks like one of them." "What was Shannon thinking? He's just as bad as that bitch." The worse one was: "Fucking freak. Not good enough for the leeches, so he decides to slum along with the humans."  
  
He held his head up high and loosened his fist. His sensitive hearing caught the parasite gasping for air, but it remained quiet. He strode over to the bar, feeling all the accusing eyes upon him, each like a painful pinprick to his soul.  
  
The middle-aged woman started to sing again, a cheerful, bawdy song that the pianist launched into just a beat behind her. The patrons looked away, back toward their drinks, meals, and card games. D sat himself on a stool, which was harder than it sounded due to his body armor and height.  
  
The bartender, a handsome middle-aged man with greying brown hair and keen blue eyes hidden behind wire framed glasses, looked up at D. He was polishing a pewter tanker in his hands. He was still polishing when he walked to the bar.  
  
"I was hired by Mayor Montgomery," D said in explanation.  
  
The bartender smiled kindly and replied, "Ah yes, you're D, the hunter. I'm Giles Wyndon-Price." He had a cultured accent from the British isles. It had been ages since D had heard the accents from Britain. He had noticed that most of the last names of the people in the city were of British origin and they supported the fair complections despite being housed in a desert.  
  
D nodded in greeting.  
  
Giles continued, "Yes, I already have a room reserved for you. Do you wish to have a bite to eat before you retire tonight? You must be famished from your journey."  
  
"Especially since you killed another one of your horses," the Left Hand chided snidely when D pushed a lock of his wavy hair behind his ear. D placed his left hand against the bar, effectively silencing it.  
  
D did notice that there was no malice in Giles' question, just simple politeness and perhaps even respect. D nodded and replied, "Yes, thank you."  
  
Giles smiled as he put down his tanker. He said, "Yes, good, very well. However, the food isn't the best here, but I do recommend the rabbit stew."  
  
D nodded in agreement.  
  
Giles asked, "Very good, now, would you like something to drink?"  
  
"Yeah, our blood!" crowed a tall, burly man with a wide brimmed hat at the poker tables. He stood up, his brown eyes full of hatred as he looked at D. He pointed at the dhampire and D simply ignored him. He wasn't going to start a fight with a human, especially one this moronic and reeking of whiskey.  
  
Giles glared and the woman singing snapped, "Shut up, Will, before I throw you out. Again."  
  
"Look at him, he looks like a fucking leech," Will growled, swaggering up to D.  
  
D recognized his voice as the one who had said, "Fucking freak. Not good enough for the leeches, so he decides to slum along with the humans."  
  
D ignored him, turning back toward Giles. He answered, "Cider if you have it." Intoxication wasn't a problem for D, but most of what the bartender served disgusted him. Especially beer. He briefly thought of Lelia and wondered how she was able to drink the fowl liquid. And wine reminded D of another more precious fluid, a temptation he constantly fought, despite the fact he did need it. However, pigs' blood was satisfactory in that case.  
  
"Can't you hear out of those bat ears of yours, you son of a bitch?" Will taunted, his warm, fowl breath tickling D's ear.  
  
Giles stated in the insulting politeness that only the English could manage, "I believe he is ignoring you, William. Now, sit back down or I will throw you out myself."  
  
"You won't old man," Will chortled, his unsteady hand going for his pistol at his side.  
  
Giles reached for something under the bar. In a lighting fast movement, he was pointing a rapier at William. He hissed, "Sir, do not insult a man that risks his very life doing something that you cannot do, and does it to bloody protect you, despite the fact you insult and threaten him like the idiotic moron that you are."  
  
Will looked at the sword, grumbled something, and walked back to his seat.  
  
D watched as Giles put back the gleaming sword and asked, "Were you a hunter?"  
  
"Yes, once, a very long time ago, until I threw my leg out. Then I trained other hunters," Giles answered with a fond sadness as he pushed a tankard of cider toward D.  
  
D asked, "What happened to them?"  
  
"They all died, except the last one, who I raised as a daughter," Giles answered with that same bittersweet look in his eyes.  
  
"And her?"  
  
Giles gave D a wiry smile and answered, "She fell in love with a vampire of all things, and he with her. Sort of poetic, in a maudlin sort of way."  
  
He picked up the tankard that he had been polishing and started the process again. He said, "But I do respect what you are doing, and I apologize about William's behavior."  
  
D said nothing. Within moments, a large bowl of rich stew was placed in front of him as well as a loaf of crusty bread. He ate in silence, listening to the blond woman sing off key as the piano player struggled to keep up.  
  
He offered to pay for the meal, but Giles had refused his money, saying that it was on the house. However, D did leave the gold upon the table. As he turned to head up to his room, Giles called out his name. D turned toward him.  
  
"Good luck. Lady Circe is clever and sadistic. She's unlike most nobles and has no goals of power, only pleasure and pain. Her Belle Morte is vicious and deadly, especially Yin-Xi and Anne," Giles warned.  
  
D tilted his head respectfully and in thanks before heading to his room.  
  
Before he opened the door, he sensed two people already in there. One female, one male, one a vampire, and the other was Swan. He had been close enough to the other dhampire to remember his scent that was laced with blood. The only thing that gave away his humanity was that he was warm, unlike a vampire.  
  
D drew his sword and kicked open the door.  
  
Indeed, sitting on his bed was Swan. Lying on her stomach was Anne. She pushed herself up on her arms and rolled over when D entered the room.  
  
Soundlessly, he attacked the two. Swan rolled off the bed and onto his feet with vampiric quickness while Anne fazed from view. D took another lunge at Swan, which caused the white-haired man to stumble.  
  
D brought the blade back up for the killing strike when something hard and sharp wrapped around his neck. With a sudden jerk, he couldn't breathe and he struggled to stay upon his feet. He turned around to see Anne wielding her whip, smirking at him, her fangs indenting her lips. Her innocent blue eyes bled to rich crimson as her pretty face turned into a leering snarl.  
  
He swung his sword to cut the whip, but Anne spun, causing D to spin with her. If he hadn't, the force of the spin would have snapped his neck. He choked for air as her grip around his neck tightened.  
  
Swan dusted himself off as he stood beside Anne. Anne jumped to the side, cracking the whip ever so slightly. The sudden movement jerked D to the ground, nearly strangling him. It also caused him to drop his sword.  
  
"The great D, kinda pathetic, don't you think, Anne?" Swan taunted as he picked up the high frequency blade.  
  
Anne grinned and replied, "But he's still fuckable."  
  
"Love, you wound me," Swan sighed as Anne jerked D back to his feet with the whip.  
  
D grabbed the whip, trying to wench it out of those tiny hands. However, Anne had other ideas. She resisted his grabbing until he was pulling with all of his might, the whip biting into his throat. His vision blurred as his air supply dwindled. Unlike Anne, he needed to breathe.  
  
He ended up sprawled on the floor again. The tiny vampire jerked hard with the whip, strangling him. D fought with the whip as Swan smirked at him. "It'll take him longer to hang than a human, Anne," he explained, green eyes twinkling with mirth.  
  
Anne replied, "I don't want to kill him. Remember, I haven't got to fuck him yet and Lady Circe wants him alive."  
  
"You poor man," Swan sighed, pushing his white hair from his face, "The humans despise you. What was it that moron said? Ah, yes, I remember now, 'Fucking freak. Not good enough for the leeches, so he decides to slum along with the humans.' He was wrong you know. The humans might not accept you, but your father's people will if you just give in." D's vision was darkening as he glared up at Swan. Anne was distracted, watching her partner. D put his feet on the floor, balled up his fist, and gave her a hard right cross.  
  
The little vampire's head was snapped back. She dropped her whip and D grasped it into his hands. He stood to his full height, cracking the whip experimentally.  
  
His throat hurt from where Anne had tried to strangle him and where the whip cut into his skin. He could smell his blood and that only helped to infuriate him even further. His eyes narrowed dangerously. He could rip them both apart and gain his sword back.  
  
He could bathe in the other half breed's blood and kill his woman in front of him.  
  
Calm down, breathe. Stay focused, don't give into the bloodlust, D thought to himself, regaining his composure.  
  
Instead, he stated, "Swan, my sword. Give it back. Now."  
  
"Impressive, no one can get out of Anne's snare once she has them," Swan said with that infuriating smirk of his.  
  
D cracked the whip. The end impacted against Swan's cheek hard enough to cut to the bone. The other dhampire dabbled the deep cut with his fingers. His eyes widened as he saw the blood. Anne snarled at D.  
  
Swan's fangs lengthened as his eyes bled to crimson. Snarling, the two charged at D. D snapped the whip again, catching Anne's arm. Swan swung the sword at D, who was able to nimbly able to dodge it. Swan took another swing, sloppier than the first.  
  
D dodged it, only to be kicked in the face by Anne. The little vampire tackled him to the ground. D wrestled with her, dodging punches. He grabbed her thick blond hair and yanked back. Her head jerked back and there was a satisfying crack of bone as it did. He shoved her off, letting go of the whip.  
  
She picked it up and stood to her feet. Her neck snapped back into place. Their red eyes gleamed at him as they gashed their fangs. Anne cracked her whip and Swan swung D's sword.  
  
D managed to avoid both blows, rolling on the floor between them. He sprang back on his feet, dodging that deadly whip again. Swan was easier to dodge. The sword was awkward in his hands, as it would be in anyone's hands except D's.  
  
Still, Anne was the problem and he needed a sword to take her out.  
  
He rolled over the bed, just a heartbeat before the whip cracked it. He pushed himself back up to his feet. Left Hand growled, "Quit pussy footing around D and kill the bitch and her boytoy before you get us both killed."  
  
D glared and caught the whip this time. He wound it around his wrist as he had done with Doris years ago. He jerked it, sending her flying against the wall.  
  
However, Swan swung again with the sword. D ducked and let go of the whip. Anne was back up, welding her deadly weapon with her practiced ease.  
  
He noticed that they had backed him into a corner. He frowned as they grinned at him. "That bastard hurt my face. My beautiful face," Swan hissed.  
  
Anne purred, "It'll heal, Swan, trust me."  
  
"But look at me, Anne, I look horrid," Swan whined.  
  
"Anyone tell you that you're really annoying?" a mocking, husky female voice asked from the window.  
  
In the confusion, D hadn't sensed the other vampire. She was dressed in sleek black with long blond hair in a braid. She held an impressive rifle unlike any D had ever seen in her long fingered hands.  
  
"Who the hell are you?" Anne asked.  
  
She shrugged and said, "Two against one, both of you armed none the less, isn't fair odds."  
  
"Oh, great, she's one of the 'good' guys," Swan groused, advancing toward D.  
  
She smirked and replied, "Good, bad, it doesn't matter, I'm the one with the gun."  
  
With that, she aimed and fired her rifle.  
  
Swan's left arm was blown off at the shoulder. Blood sprayed from the wound, splattering Anne as the dhampire screamed. D's sword dropped to the ground along with the mangled limb.  
  
D automatically drew it and was back to his feet.  
  
Anne picked up Swan's arm and grabbed him with her free hand. She looked at the gun toting vampire in the window and snarled. D went after her, but Anne dove through the window, shoving the gun toting vampire out of the way.  
  
Anne took to the air, supporting Swan, who was still screaming in pain.  
  
"Oh, no you don't," the vampire snapped, launching out of the window after them.  
  
D heard voices from downstairs approaching. He looked out the window and jumped out as well. He followed on foot as Anne was chased by the other blond.  
  
"What the hell was that? A vampire with a gun? Has Hell frozen over? That's just not right," Left Hand groused. For once, D found himself agreeing with the parasite.  
  
To Be Continued! 


	3. Chapter Two: A Perplexing Woman

Disclaimer: Vampire Hunter D is the property of its creator, Hideuki Kikuchi. I do not own D or any of the characters related to the novel series.  
  
Warning: This story is rated R for language, violence, adult situations, and sexual content.   
  
Author's Notes: Special thanks the VHD Yahoo! Posting Board for their information on D, his sexuality, and so on and so forth. Special thanks also goes to Psi Yamaneko for her insights on D, his personality, sexuality, and ideas for this story; like the names. Sorry, but Forest wasn't going to play the victim this time, Psi.   
  
I dedicate this story to Akemi and Psi, D's a dish, and we all know it.  
  
Weak and Powerless  
  
Chapter Two: A Perplexing Woman  
  
By: Elf  
  
You're such an inspiration for the ways  
  
That I'll never ever choose to be  
  
Oh so many ways for me to show you  
  
How the savior has abandoned you  
  
A Perfect Circle: Judith  
  
Washington, D.C. 2004  
  
Kirsten Winters looked at the gleaming diamond ring on her left hand. She twisted it around her finger nervously as her boot heels clomped loudly against the hard wood floors. The tiny house was beautiful and more than two hundred years old. She would live in it in less than a week, but the move wasn't the main thing on her mind.  
  
She looked at the sparkling diamond in its platinum band and wondered how her Chris was going to take the news. She splayed her right hand over her flat stomach, as if she could feel the life pulsing there. The life that she and Chris had created that was now growing inside her. The life that was the final proof of their love for one and another.  
  
"Now telling him is the hard part," Kirsten chuckled to herself as she saw her reflection in the mirror. She was dressed in jeans, hiking boots, and a camouflage print tank top, her blond hair was cut in a stylish bob around her face, and her honey brown eyes were sparkling.  
  
There were other things going through her mind as well, mainly her ties to the government. She was a Black Ops agent, one of the best and one of the most secret. Mommyhood didn't include breaking into third world countries' dictator's homes and steal important papers. It didn't entail shoot outs in Tokyo Square with yakazua software in her hands. It didn't entail high speed chases. It meant that she was going to have to get a desk job and divide the Intel instead of gathering it.  
  
Still, Chris and the little one were worth it.  
  
She smiled to herself as she watched the sunset and waited for Chris.  
  
******  
  
"This just isn't fair," the Left Hand was complaining as D was running after the two vampires and the dhampire, "See, those bitches can fly. But here we are running around like idiots after them."  
  
D, as he usually did, ignored the parasite there as he ran. His cloak was swirling behind him with each step, but the two vampires in the air were fast. However, Swan was still bleeding from the wound the other vampire had inflicted upon him. D could follow the blood scent with ease.  
  
He looked up and frowned. The three had disappeared into the night sky, using low-lying clouds and fog for cover. Fog that hadn't been there before, D realized with a start as he opened his left hand and directed it up and out.  
  
He felt his skin stretching on his palm as the two beady eyes, the snub nose, and the mouth formed itself from his flesh. He stated, "Do you sense a spell?"  
  
"Actually yeah. Someone just cooked one up, rather quickly too. Elemental stuff with a hint of dark magic. Probably from that hot witch from Belle Morte," Left Hand answered.  
  
D sniffed the air and frowned. Left Hand snickered, "What, can't smell that other dhampire anymore? She probably teleported them back to their mistress. Win some, you lose some D. You'll get em later. Come on, lets go back to the inn."  
  
"No," D replied as he lowered his hand, "I want to find that other vampire."  
  
Left Hand sighed, "She's not right. Using guns like that. Vampires and guns don't mix. They have other powers, why the hell would she need a gun?"  
  
"And why is she hunting her own kind?" D asked rhetorically, knowing that the Left Hand would have trouble wrapping his brain around that.  
  
Left Hand answered, "I don't know. Territorial dispute, who knows. Maybe she lost her mind or something. After all, she uses guns, how plebeian."  
  
D narrowed his eyes and began another search.  
  
******  
  
"What the fuck was going on back there?" Anne snapped as Moira began to reattach Swan's arm. They had made it back to the castle with Moira's help. They were currently in one of the solars, waiting for Lady Circe.  
  
The dhampire had a greenish tint to his white skin and his face was slack. He was moaning slightly in pain as Anne held him up. Her red eyes were glowing in fury as she replayed the events in her mind.  
  
Moira closed her eyes and began to hum in a lyrical and lilting language that Anne couldn't recognize. Her hands glowed with a dark violet energy as Swan's face and arm began to seal themselves, leaving the skin perfect and whole, beautiful once more. Anne reached up and stroked her lover's near-white hair and cupped his cheek.  
  
"Is something amiss, little Anne?"  
  
Anne turned toward the purring voice of her mistress. She stood to her full height and gave a deep bow. Circe approached her and lifted her hand to signal Anne to stand up right.  
  
Anne did and looked at her mistress. The Lady Circe's cheeks were flushed with fresh blood, her long ruby red hair was spilled over her shoulders and trailed to her curved rear. She was dressed in shimmering emerald, highlighting the stark crimson of her hair and eyes. The pure blood noble observed Anne, Moira, and Swan with a quizzical tilt of her head.  
  
Flanking Circe was Yin-Xi, dressed in her crimson gi top and black pants. She stood straight and alert, on guard. She fixed impassive black eyes on them. Anne had the urge to take her whip to the beautiful and exotic face of the mistress' weapon.  
  
Circe asked, "My bonny Swan, what happened to you?"  
  
"We met D," Swan answered.  
  
Circe's full lips curved into a cattish grin. She toyed with a lock of her curly hair and asked, "Is he as beautiful as rumors say?"  
  
"I'd fuck him in an instant," Anne answered with a hungry grin.  
  
Circe looked Anne over and said, "But you are drawn to the half breeds, dear. I think this is because you were human once. Luckily, I do not suffer from that ailment."  
  
Anne stiffened at the tiny reminder that she was made and not born. Swan was more accepted among the nobles because he had a noble father. She was turned, but she had been one of the cattle.  
  
Moira answered in her soft, lilting voice, "He is, my lady, and more. He puts Swan's beauty to shame and he is a hunter."  
  
"Trust my witch to always give me a straight answer," Circe said fondly.  
  
Moira gave a tiny bow and stood away from Swan. The witch said, "But there is more, Lady Circe. Another vampire who uses man's weapons went after Anne and Swan while they were encountering Hunter D."  
  
"That gun toting, psychotic bitch," Swan growled, baring his fangs.  
  
A flicker of interest passed through Yin-Xi's eyes. The doll like vampiress stated, "I trust that you escaped."  
  
"I had to cast a few spells to aid them, but as you can tell, they are here," Moira answered, tossing her burnished hair from her face.  
  
Circe asked, "And did you deliver my message to the good mayor?"  
  
"Yes," Swan answered as he moved his newly reformed arm. He nodded in satisfaction and wrapped an arm around Anne's waist. She leaned into his warm body and smirked as she seductively rubbed her backside against his hips.  
  
Circe replied, "Excellent, even though I doubt that our pretty little mayor would resend such a contract, but I am giving her a chance. However, it's been a while since I've participated in a good slaughter. There's nothing like it, the fear, the eroticism, the taste of rich blood on your tongue that is spiced with fear, hate, and passion." She sighed fondly in remembrance.  
  
"And what about D and the traitorous bitch?" Anne asked, meeting her mistress' garnet colored eyes.  
  
Circe shrugged her graceful, slender shoulders. She grinned as she answered, "Well, I'm planning to keep D for a while. It's been so long since I've had a toy that wouldn't break easily, as for the other problem, I might want to play with her too."  
  
With that, she turned away, her hips swaying seductively as she walked away.  
  
******  
  
"Fucking yay to magic," she groused as she landed. She had lost them, Anne and Swan.   
  
"Fucking great," she cursed. Her boots touched the ground. She felt winded and exhausted. She didn't ingest enough blood to have the full range of vampiric powers.  
  
She sensed the presence of someone approaching. She drew her rifle and aimed it with one hand. She frowned as it was the dhampire that Anne and Swan had attacked in the inn.  
  
Then, as he approached, she got a clear look at him.  
  
He was beautiful, exquisite, even compared to the vampires she regularly killed. He was tall and slender with broad shoulders. He wore a wide brimmed hat that covered most of his face, but what a face it covered. It was delicately sculpted with high cheek bones, a pointed chin, that Aristocratic nose, and those pouting lips. Wavy, ebony hair spilled over his shoulders and laid upon the sleek raven caprice of his armor. A sapphire the size of her fist lay upon his chest, swaying slightly with each movement.  
  
He had his sword pointed directly at her.  
  
******  
  
"Well, I'll give her this, she's a looker," Left Hand commented once the vampire landed.  
  
She was tall, athletic but her body could only be considered feminine. She had long golden hair in a braid that fell to her waist, strands of it falling in her face. She stared at D with amber colored eyes. Her duster was whipping slightly behind her. She was also pointing her rifle at him.  
  
D had his sword out, prepared to strike.  
  
They stared at another for an endless moment. In the silence, D could hear his heart beat. The parasite was quiet as well. They stood in their stalemate, her with her unusual gun and him with his familiar sword.  
  
"Nice sword," she stated in a husky voice.  
  
D replied, "It's unusual for a vampire to have a gun."  
  
"Unusual, that's a nice way of putting it," she retorted, putting her gun away and holding her hands up.  
  
D asked her, "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Probably the same reason you're here, but different motives," she answered with a tiny grin as she stepped closer.  
  
The parasite warned, "I don't trust her D. Watch her."  
  
D said nothing as they looked at each other. From the fact that her eyes were not crimson at the moment, D surmised that she was turned. She was not born a vampire. She had been human at one point in time.  
  
He envied her for that.  
  
"Oh, and you're welcome for blowing off that bastard's arm, by the way," she said sarcastically.  
  
D frowned in confusion as she continued her verbal tirade, "And then there's this witch who decides to use fucking magic! Vampires and witches? There should be some sort of rule against that!"  
  
Then she smiled at D. It was an empty smile, lost of emotion. As if she had turned herself off to such things a long time ago. D reasoned that she probably had and was still going through the human motions.  
  
"I'm Morgan," she said in form of introduction, "And you must be the infamous Hunter D."  
  
D said nothing in return.  
  
She shrugged and continued, "I'm guessing you're going for the bounty right? Ten million is kind of an insult for a bitch like Circe."  
  
"I have my reasons," D replied stonily.  
  
She smirked at him and retorted, "Like the town full of innocent people? Or the pretty mayor who fluttered her eyelashes at you and showed off her little brother?"  
  
The Left Hand snickered at this.  
  
D glared.  
  
"You know, not everyone knows the Language of the Glare. Most people speak, make with the verbal communication to get their point across. See, with the look you're giving me right now you could either be undressing me with your eyes or plotting my horrible flaming death," Morgan quipped, placing a hand on her slim hip.  
  
Now D blinked in confusion. Her manner of speech was confusing. Her words were in English, but her accent and her word usage completely floored the dhampire.  
  
"Now what's wrong?" Morgan asked, her brow furrowing.   
  
D tried again, "Why did you attack Swan and Anne?"  
  
"Because Anne is a nymphomaniac bondage bitch and Swan is one step away from being an incubus and they both work for the Whore From Hell," Morgan spat as she checked her rifle. She was avoiding D's gaze he realized.  
  
D asked, "So you're not after the reward?"  
  
"Right now I don't give a flying fuck about the reward. Like I said my reasons are personal involving vendettas and promises to dead people," Morgan answered before looking back up at D.  
  
She took a deep, unneeded breath and asked, "Anything else do you want to know?"  
  
D said nothing. Then she smiled and said, "Well, it was nice meeting you. And talking to you, even though the conversation was one-sided, but all women like a man who listens."  
  
With that, she turned away, her duster flipping behind her like bats' wings.  
  
Left Hand said, "Well, she was rude. And her way of talking? Did you have any idea what she said? She's a made vampire D, not even noble. She's not worth our time. Now, lets focus on Circe and get this bounty."  
  
D however chose to follow the blond.  
  
Left Hand groused, "Oh, come on D, what the hell are you thinking? She's a weird vampire yes, but she's still a vampire. Insane at that. Leave her alone unless she gets in the way."  
  
"There's something different about her," D replied softly.  
  
Left Hand snapped, "D, you've seen hot female vampires before. Sure, she was human, but she's a vampire now. If you wanna get laid, which after a couple of thousand years its about damned time, why don't you go to something a little less dangerous than an insane vampire?"  
  
D's jaw tightened at the symbiote's words.  
  
It continued, "I'm all for you ending your Vow of Chastity. Hell, I have a sex drive and I wouldn't mind getting the occasional piece of ass, but sex with a vampire isn't a good thing, D. I mean, look where it got you."  
  
D's fingers closed over the taunting parasite as he made sure he kept distance enough from Morgan that she didn't sense him, but yet he could follow her. The long braid of blond hair wasn't hard to miss, and she didn't take that many precautions to keep someone from following her. Which all worked to D's advantage.  
  
Until she walked into Lichpin's forest.  
  
She went off the well-trodden trail. She doubled back several times. She even covered her tracks and made a false trail. D admired her systematic methods. Still, he wasn't the world's best hunter for nothing. He was crouched in the darkness, still as death as he watched her.  
  
He watched as Morgan pulled a small box from her pocket. She pushed a button on the box and the trees in front of her shimmered and faded from view. In the hologram's wake a house-sized vehicle was parked. Unlike the tank like vehicles of the day, this was sleek, polished and streamline despite its size.  
  
She walked up to the door and punched a code in on the console. D's eyes narrowed so he could catch the numerical code. Her slender fingers pressed 5-1-9-0-4 and the door slid open with a slight hissing sound. With a look over her shoulder, she stepped into the vehicle. As soon as she was in side, it slid shut with a sharp clang, sealing her from the outside world.  
  
D was curious about the vehicle now and where she had acquired the long dead technology. He hadn't been alive before the War that depleted the number of man enough that the Forces of Darkness could take over and rule. He had heard tales from his father about the blasts that destroyed all life for miles and filled the sky with a deadly light and suffocating gas.  
  
As he watched, the hologram shimmered back into place, placing perfect camouflage for the vehicle. He couldn't enter it now. She would be ready for a strike, but dawn was only an hour a way. Once the sun was in the sky she would be helpless and he would be back to investigate.  
  
******  
  
"Look, Honey Bear, I'm on the Bestseller's list again!"  
  
Kirsten grinned as she kept count of her sit-ups.   
  
Her fiancé, Chris Anderson waved the latest issue of Publisher's Weekly in her face. On the cover there was a photo of his latest book in his Dark Tymes series. The post-modern vampire story about a feme fatal vampire hunting her own kind for cash and helping out humans when she could was a big hit. Especially since Buffy the Vampire Slayer had went off the air over a year ago.  
  
Chris' green eyes were sparkling behind his wire rimmed glasses. He always reminded her of Harry Potter because of those sparkling green eyes and his always mussed hair. But his hair was a dark auburn instead of Harry's raven locks. However, his tall awkwardness was always what she had in mind when she read the Harry Potter series.  
  
"Honey Bear, didn't you hear me?" he asked, a teasing smile lifting his lips.  
  
Kirsten nodded as she sat up. She ran her fingers through her sweaty hair and answered, "Yeah, your Dark Tymes series is kicking ass with all the Gothers. Buffy must have really left more of a void than Joss Whedon realized."  
  
"You're teasing me," Chris accused as he held out his hand to her. She took it and he managed to lift her up. She kissed him gently before turning away from him and heading to her kitchen.  
  
She retorted, "Of course I'm teasing you, Chris. If I didn't tease you, I wouldn't love you."  
  
He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She looked up at him fondly, from the five freckles on his slightly crooked nose, those vibrant green eyes, and the slender planes of his face. He was almost her bipolar opposite, his nose always in a book or pressed against his computer screen as he wrote. To get him outside for exercise was like pulling teeth.  
  
"I can't wait until Friday," he purred, nuzzling her neck before kissing the damp skin he found there. His long, nimble fingers rested over her stomach before trailing lower. They rode the edges of her exercise shorts before trailing back up to cup her breasts.  
  
He continued, "I love watching you work out. I love the way your muscles move. How your eyes narrow with concentration. I get hard just thinking about it, Honey."  
  
"Maybe I should give you a work out," she retorted, turning around to face him and wrapping her arms around her neck. With a slow movement, she slid one of her long legs up his body to wrap around his waist. Kirsten grinned wickedly as Chris groaned and rested his forehead against his. She rubbed her socked foot down the outer edge of her thigh as much as she was able.  
  
Chris moaned, "And I love it when you do that. God, it turns me on so much that you can do the things you do."  
  
"What, like this?" Kirsten asked as she lowered her leg to the ground. She then locked her foot against his ankle and swept it toward her. He went down like a sack of potatoes and she then straddled his prone body. He placed his hands up on her hips and looked at her hungrily. She shifted her hips and felt exactly how much this was exciting him.  
  
He nodded and groaned, "Exactly like that." He thrust his hips up to meet hers, causing her to gasp. Then she bent down and captured his lips with her own in a hot kiss.  
  
As she kissed him, she forgot about telling him about the baby, worrying if her father was going to punch Chris' father at the wedding, and the desk job she was going to resign herself to after she was married.  
  
Chris' hands roamed up her back and then slid under her shirt. His skilled fingers brushed against her breasts. He moved his mouth from hers to run his swollen lips against her throat. She sighed and arched toward him for better access.  
  
When she did, she looked out the window. The motion had been totally accidental, but what she saw there made her freeze. Red eyes glowing in the darkness, watching them.  
  
"Kirsty?" Chris asked, stopping his attentions as he looked up at her with a questioning glance.  
  
Kirsten frowned and pointed toward the window. She answered, "I thought I saw something watching us."  
  
"What, a pair of red eyes?" he joked as he moved to kiss her again.  
  
She placed her hand on his chest to stop him. She replied, "Exactly."  
  
Chris sat up and studied her face. He cupped her cheek and frowned. "You're spooked."  
  
She nimbly climbed to her feet and silently grabbed her service piece from the desk. She put the holster on and checked the Glock 19's safety catch. With that, she swiftly crept outside to the balcony of her apartment. She held her gun down as she went through the usual motions that had been integrated into her mind since she had been eighteen.  
  
Kirsten looked around, on perfect alert.   
  
She heard something inside the apartment and it wasn't Chris. She spun around and jumped back in to see a huge wolf-man thing towering above Chris. Her mouth dropped open, but she reacted quickly when the thing reached out to grab her fiancé. She aimed and fired.  
  
The werewolf looked at her and growled. However, it picked up Chris and bounded out the door. Kirsten followed it, holding her gun out. She hit it again, blood spraying on the apartment walls. She shouted, "Let him go, now!"  
  
"I don't think so, my dear," a sultry female voice said from behind her.  
  
She spun around, her gun out. Standing there was a tall, stunning redhead in complete fetish gear. Black leather cat suit, laces, knee high boots the works. Like one of the villains from Chris' novels.   
  
And she had eyes like rubies.  
  
She looked at Kirsten, holding her gun at her and Kirsten realized that the gun felt too heavy in her hands. That she had to let it go and that the stunning goddess in front of her could not be killed by such plebeian means. She turned the safety back on before the gun dropped to the ground.  
  
"No," Kirsten protested weakly as the redhead approached her.  
  
The redhead looked at Chris and Chris shouted, "Leave her alone, you bitch!"  
  
"You're wasted on one like him," the Redhead purred as she stroked Kirsten's cheek. "However, you're perfect for me, my sweet."  
  
******  
  
"Anne and Swan attacked you last night."  
  
It wasn't a question, it was a statement, but D realized very quickly that Giles Wyndom-Price was a very intelligent and observant man.  
  
D nodded as Giles slid him a pot of tea and a teacup across the bar. D was pleasantly surprised to smell real tea in the teapot and not the herbal teas that had become more easily accessible in this day. He poured himself a cup, inhaled the rich scent of tea leaves and took a sip.  
  
Giles sighed, "Damn those bastards. They're the worst of Belle Morte, almost as horrid as Lady Circe himself."  
  
"They'll be dead soon enough," D said matter-of-factly. He was sure that he could kill Anne and while part of him was regretful at the idea of killing Swan, it had to be done. What Swan is was what D was afraid to become, preying on humans simply because he could. Swan had given up his humanity and that was something D swore to himself a long time ago that he wouldn't do.  
  
And if that did happen, he hoped that another hunter would kill him before he became too dangerous. Maybe Morgan, D thought strangely, a frown gracing his features at the thought. He studied the golden brown liquid that sat in his cup as if it had the answers.  
  
Giles said, "I'm surprised you even took this job, for the price that Mayor Montgomery is asking. Younger, I would have been bloody insulted if she had offered only ten million for a vampire like Circe."  
  
"You need her dead, it's as simple as that," D replied as he sipped the scalding liquid, careful not to burn his tongue. However, his left hand was another matter entirely. He gripped the cup tightly, secretly hoping he was causing the parasite discomfort.  
  
Then he asked, "Where is her castle at? I didn't see it."  
  
It was true, he hadn't seen her castle, but Shannon had mentioned one last night. She hadn't mentioned much about it, just that there had been a castle and after it had been built was when Circe had been attacking. Since he couldn't see it that worried him.  
  
"It disappeared after it was built and no one has been able to get to it and come back alive. Just before you arrived here a group of teenagers set out to find the castle. All but the leader arrived dead," Giles sighed, "Rumor has it that it's hidden by a spell and only those who Circe wants to enter or of vampiric blood can enter its grounds."  
  
That doesn't stand a problem for me then, D thought reflectively, Nor Morgan.  
  
D then asked, "About the castle, do you remember where it was built at?"  
  
"Young man, what sort of ex-vampire hunter do you take me for?" Giles retorted with a tiny grin as he pulled a map from under the bar. He unfolded it and said, "Now, from which direction would you like to storm the castle at?"  
  
D raised an eyebrow at being called a "young man" but he let it pass. He studied the map and answered, "All, and the surrounding terrain."  
  
Giles' smile bloomed, "I wish some of my students had your foresight."  
  
******  
  
5-1-9-0-4.  
  
"D, we shouldn't be here. We shouldn't be going in here, and I don't know how you were able to find this monster again. It blends in too well," Left Hand was grousing as D used his right to type in Morgan's code.  
  
The door hissed open and D felt a rush of cool air hit his face. It felt relaxing against the warm sun outside. He soundlessly stepped in, carefully moving his cloak away from the door as it shut itself.  
  
The vehicle was bathed in crimson light, perfect for light-sensitive eyes. It was also cool inside and there was the feint sound of electrical humming. There were weapons stored all over the walls, mainly various types of guns from different areas. He noticed storage panels lined against the walls complete with electronic locks.  
  
In the center of the vehicle, pushed up against the wall, was a large clear storage unit. It was filled with a thick, red viscous fluid that D automatically knew as blood. Despite the airtight casing he could smell its sweet, sharp smell on the air. He walked up to it and placed his right hand on it.   
  
Frowning, he withdrew his hand to find that it was warm. It was also moving. Flowing really. D noticed that the blood was hooked up to a filtration and heat system. He stared at the device, captivated by it.  
  
"Neat little contraption, probably when she can't bite people," the Left Hand snorted sarcastically.  
  
D replied, "It's pigs' blood, not human."  
  
"Easier to get then," the Symbiote huffed.  
  
D continued to look around the vehicle and all the weapons. All he knew was that they were guns and some of them unlike any he had ever seen before. Like the tiny, light weight black pistols. Most guns, even revolvers, were chunky and awkward. Some of these were streamlined and delicate.  
  
D wondered how old was she as he typed in the code to one of the lock panels. It came open with the now familiar hissing sound. It was filled with various books about vampires and the supernatural. Some of them had bright, glossy covers while the others were the more familiar leather bound tomes that D was use to. One's cover was even inlaid with rubies and garnets.   
  
He closed that panel and moved onto the next. This one was filled with what looked to be paperback novels and a few hard backs. Things that D hadn't seen since he was a small child. He picked up one of the books and frowned.   
  
It was vampire fiction written by mortals during a more innocent time. At closer inspection all the books were. They were all written by the same author: Christopher Campbell. Frowning, D closed that unit and moved onto the next.  
  
This drawer was filled with personal items. There was a photograph in a plastic frame fashioned to look like tarnished silver. He picked it up and studied it.  
  
In the photo there was a tall, gangly young man with dark auburn hair, wire framed glasses, and bright green eyes. He was handsome in a bookish sort of way, and his smile was personable and open. Innocent almost.   
  
His arm was wrapped around a tall woman with blond hair cut into an efficient bob. She was grinning wickedly, her golden brown eyes sparkling in the photograph. Morgan had been pretty as a human, but was stunning as a vampire.  
  
D put the photograph down and picked up a small black velvet box. A jewelry box. He opened it to find a simple round diamond gleaming in a platinum band. On the inside of the band it read: For All Eternity.   
  
He gently closed the box and replaced it. There was a bigger box, this one green velvet. He opened it to find a few military rank insignias nestled in there. There was a golden name plate that read: Capt. Kirsten J. Winters. D put the box down.  
  
There was a scrap book and D picked it up. He carefully flipped through the pages. There were some of Morgan, no Kirsten, dressed in a smart black uniform holding a rapier that seemed more for show than combat. The same rapier that was wrapped in gauze under the various keepsakes.  
  
There were some of her and the redhead, as well as a few articles about an author named Christopher Campbell. Who obviously was the redhead. They seemed to be a happy couple if strangely mismatched.  
  
D also found a book on Celtic Mythology of all things that was lovingly dog eared. He put that down and found an amber heart on a silver chain. Then his hand brushed against a thick sheet of paper, yellowed and brittled with age.  
  
A wedding invitation for May 19, 2004.  
  
"Maybe I should just call you Nick," Morgan's husky voice said behind him as D felt something press against the back of his head, just under his hat.  
  
He spun around, grabbed her wrist, and jerked the gun down. Her golden eyes widened as she looked at him. His narrowed as he let her wrist go.  
  
He said, "Hello Kirsten."  
  
To Be Continued. 


	4. Chapter Three: The Fallen

Disclaimer: Vampire Hunter D is the property of its creator, Hideuki Kikuchi. I do not own D or any of the characters related to the novel series.  
  
Warning: This story is rated R for language, violence, adult situations, and sexual content.  
  
Author's Notes: Special thanks the VHD Yahoo! Posting Board for their information on D, his sexuality, and so on and so forth. Special thanks also goes to Psi Yamaneko for her insights on D, his personality, sexuality, and ideas for this story; like the names. Sorry, but Forest wasn't going to play the victim this time, Psi.  
  
I dedicate this story to Akemi and Psi, D's a dish, and we all know it.  
  
Weak and Powerless  
Chapter Three: The Fallen  
By: Elf  
Tilling my own grave to keep me level  
Jam another dragon down the hole  
Digging to the rhythm and the echo of a solitary siren  
One that pushes me along and leaves me so  
Desperate and ravenous  
So weak and powerless  
A Perfect Circle: Weak and Powerless  
  
It took Morgan a moment to recover from her shock. Her service Glock had slid from her fingers and clattered to the floor. D reached over and opened up the velvet box that contained her military insignias. Had it been able, her heart would of leapt into her throat at the sight of the gold name tag.  
  
Her hand slowly reached out and touched the shining plate despite herself. As soon as her fingers touched the shining metal she jerked back as if it had bit her. She turned away from those intense silvery-blue eyes.  
  
"She died a very, very long time ago," Morgan said dully, squeezing her eyes shut against the memories.  
  
Of Chris. The baby. Of her. Of the life she never had. Of the wedding that she died before. Of leering crimson eyes and cold, leather clad hands touching her, stroking her with intent and purpose. Of the revolution she had felt. Of the pain of having needle sharp fangs tear through her throat.  
  
D replied, "She was turned a very long time ago."  
  
Morgan spun around to face the beautiful hunter and the stoic expression writ upon that too perfect face. A face that Morgan had the urge to slam her fist into just to see if she could make that Aristocratic nose crooked or those sleepy blue eyes widen in shock. How could he be so damned impassive with her soul bared to him on the table like that?  
  
So, Morgan gave into anger. It was a much easier emotion to deal with than grief. She could focus it and let it temper her skill. She growled, feeling her fangs lengthen.  
  
And she threw that punch.  
  
D turned out of the way and grabbed her wrist. With a simple turn he had her in an arm lock. She glared up at him, seething in anger. She struggled against him, not caring about the pain.  
  
"You're not suppose to poke through a person's things," Morgan snapped, slamming her head back. The blow connected with his throat, causing D to gasp, but he only tightened his grip on her arm and jerked it up.  
  
She continued to shrill, "Bastard! You don't know what she took from me! You don't have the right to go fucking through my things!"  
  
D spun her around so she was facing him. He was gently holding her wrists as the memories were overtaking her. Morgan felt icy tears sting her eyes as she continued to scream, "It wasn't right! Not fair! The things she did and . . ."  
  
She slumped, sobbing and defeated.  
  
She hadn't had the heart to look at the items in over three thousand years, and yet this one man brought all of her defenses crashing down. She wept for Chris. Wept for herself. Wept for the baby and the life she never had.  
  
Awkward arms wrapped around her shoulders and held her as she cried. Morgan clung to the tall, slender form holding her as she sobbed out thousands of years of frustration, fear, pain, and loss. She pressed her cheek against smooth armor as her bloody tears exhausted themselves to dry hiccups. She clutched at him and kept her eyes shut.  
  
"Circe turned you against your will and killed your lover," D stated softly as he gently pushed her away from him. However, he did keep his hands on her shoulders as he studied her with long lashed silvery-blue eyes.  
  
Morgan briskly wiped the bloody tears from her eyes and shook her head. She fiercely replied, "No, she did more than that. A lot more than that."  
  
D looked at her expectantly, gracefully leaning against a weapon's cabinet. His face was again unreadable, simply expectant. Morgan ran her fingers through her hair, absently realizing that she probably looked like Shit on a Shingle.  
  
She began to tell her story.  
  
Kirsten was cold. Her arms felt heavy and numb. Her legs were tired. There was an icy draft caressing places that shouldn't be caressed by an icy draft.  
  
She opened her eyes and steeled herself as her training demanded. She flexed her fingers and tried to move her arms. All she could do was jiggle them a little. The clanging of chains rang out through the darkness.  
  
"What the fuck?" Kirsten cursed as her eyes adjusted to the lack of light. She looked up only to see her arms chained above her head. With actual chains. Nobody used chains anymore when nylon rope was so easily available.  
  
There was another draft of cold air that whirled around her, causing her nipples to tighten and her body to shiver as goose bumps blossomed along her skin. That was when she realized she was naked. She gritted her teeth as she became more aware.  
  
There was no lingering pain anywhere except her arms. That meant that she hadn't been raped. Yet. Thank God for small miracles, she thought wiry as she gave the chains another experimental tug.  
  
"Kirsten?"  
  
Her eyes widened as she recognized Chris' voice. She made out another shadowy shape chained to the ceiling like she had been. "Chris? Are you okay?" she replied, twisting her arms and the chains to face him.  
  
"Kirsty, I'm scared. Where are we?" Chris admitted, his head turning frantically as he tried to inspect his surroundings. Without his glasses he was practically blind except for his nearsightedness.  
  
Kirsten took a deep breath and answered, "I don't know where we are, my love, but don't panic. Panic is the worse thing you can do in a situation like this."  
  
Another facet of her training involved keeping a hostage calm at all cost.  
  
"But maybe I want you to panic. I want to hear you scream as I turn your bride into one of us before we kill you," a husky, seductive female voice purred from the darkness.  
  
Kirsten was perfectly still as a leather gloved hand caressed her face. The hand gently stroked her neck to run down and cup her left breast. Kirsten grit her teeth as her nipple was rolled between two fingers only to be surrounded by a cold wetness. She had enough night vision to see the curly red head bent over her breast and suckling it.  
  
It was the most revolting thing that Kirsten had felt. The woman kneaded Kirsten's right breast as she continued to nurse the left. Kirsten drew her legs up to kick the woman off of her when she felt something sharp stab through her breast.  
  
She cried out as she felt blood well up through the wound. The woman began to suck harder, her teeth scraping the sensitive flesh. I've been bitten. This crazy bitch bit me, Kirsten thought wildly as the hand on her right breast became rougher as more blood was drawn from the left.  
  
With a grunt, Kirsten kicked at the woman hard in the stomach. It sent her sprawling. The teeth tore at Kirsten's skin as the woman, no vampire, fell back.  
  
The vampire's crimson eyes were glowing brightly in her exquisite face and her fangs dripped blood. She stood up and licked her mouth. She gave Kirsten a lazy smile. "Delicious and feisty. I like that. I am Lady Circe and I'm about to bestow upon you a great gift."  
  
"More like great curse," Morgan sighed as she sat on her cot.  
  
D said, "She was going to initiate you into Belle Morte because she found you attractive and your military background."  
  
"And she killed Chris just because she wanted to, but it wasn't just that," Morgan admitted as she looked away from the dhampire.  
  
D said nothing, but then again Morgan already found out that D was a man of few words. Which, in the case of most men that was a good thing. Except with D it became frustrating.  
  
"I was pregnant and Chris never knew. Of course, the baby died when I died," Morgan whispered as she hugged herself.  
  
D stated, "So you hunt other vampires now, for vengeance."  
  
"Yeah, everyone I kill gives me a tiny piece of that life back," Morgan retorted dryly.  
  
D gave her a questioning look. In all truth, he looked confused. Well, Morgan liked to be confusing, it kept her opponents off balance.  
  
D stood up and headed for the door. He told her, "I have to get back to the town. I am going after Circe though. I understand your pain, but there is too much at risk."  
  
With that he left.  
  
Morgan quipped, "Yeah, good bye to you too, buddy."  
  
****** "That poor girl. Just a few days before her wedding, hadn't even told her fiancé that she was pregnant, and basically gets raped and changed by Circe. If she wants to kill a few leeches I say let her, D," Left Hand said as D started the trip back to Lichpin before sundown.  
  
The parasite continued, "Hey, maybe you should go back and comfort her, you know. She's a lonely girl. So what she's a vampire. You'll warm her up quickly enough. It'll do you both some good. Its about time that you've gotten laid."  
  
D sighed, ignoring his hand's constant commentary. He had his reasons for his self-imposed celibacy. Mainly his father's side of the family and that he could lose control. He did not want to have some poor girl die in his arms for the sake of physical gratification. And then there was the annoyance that laid in his left palm. D doubted that there wasn't a woman who would be afraid of that.  
  
Not that he could blame them, the parasite was an annoyance at best.  
  
Besides, he had a village to protect. Shannon and her brother Donovan. Giles. All three of them had shown him kindness despite what he was. It touched him and made his life a bit more bearable. Giles even understood him on a certain level while Shannon depended on him to keep her town safe where she could not.  
  
He could not help Morgan. She had needed help an eternity ago and there was no one to give it to her. So she suffered for another's momentary pleasure. If killing vampires gave her some small amount of peace, then D wouldn't take that away from her.  
  
Except for this one.  
  
D had told Shannon he would try. He hadn't made any promises; it was never good to do that in this line of work. However, Circe's death was something a long time coming and D had the satisfaction if by the odd chance that he would fail, there would be another to pick up where he had left off.  
  
****** Shannon was looking through paperwork. Town budget, taxes, and law enforcement policies. She sighed and rubbed her temples. Paperwork, I hate paperwork, she thought with a dismal sigh.  
  
Luckily, she had a savor: there was a soft knock on her door.  
  
"Come in," she replied as she reached under her desk. Her hand curled around her familiar pulse pistol from when she had served as sherif. If Belle Morte decided to waltz into her office again, she'd be ready for them.  
  
The door opened and she relaxed at the sight of her visitor. D was standing there. She motioned him into the office. Shannon couldn't help but to watch his elegant, graceful form as he walked over to his desk. His beauty put most vampire's to shame, but then again he was half vampire after all.  
  
She removed her hand from her pulse pistol and D said, "You wouldn't have been able to shoot them in time."  
  
Shannon frowned at him and asked, "Is she dead?"  
  
"No. I'm waiting for the right moment and gathering more information about Circe," D answered.  
  
Shannon smiled fondly and said, "You've been talking to Mr. Wynsten-Price then."  
  
D simply looked at her. She couldn't read his expression due to the fact his hat hid over half of his face. She saw herself reflected in the large blue jewel that he wore around his neck. She wondered if it had any significance to it, or if it was simply for decoration.  
  
Shannon sighed and kicked up her feet on her desk, carefully avoiding the paperwork. She asked, "So, what are you here for?"  
  
"You need to give an order for the townspeople to take cover tonight. I plan to engage Belle Morte when they find out that I have not left and you have not recanted the bounty on her head," D answered.  
  
Shannon's eyes widened as she exclaimed, "You're not going to fight them in my town! Are you kidding?"  
  
"I will try lead them away from your town, but I cannot make any guarantees," D replied simply.  
  
Shannon sighed, "Well, at least you're not making false promises."  
  
"They are a waste of time and give false hope," D replied thoughtfully.  
  
Shannon sat up, swinging her legs back to the proper place on the floor. She looked at the dhampire and replied, "Sometimes people need a little hope, no matter if it's false or not."  
  
D said nothing to that. Instead, he changed the subject. "Just have the people be ready. Do not put them all together. Keep them separate and hidden. It'll buy them some time."  
  
"Why don't we just gather them all in the church? I'm sure Father Anderson wouldn't mind," Shannon argued as she rose to her feet.  
  
D explained, "There are a werewolf and a witch. A very powerful witch. Crosses and hollowed ground will not stop them, Mayor Montgomery."  
  
"What about on the other side of the river. Vampires can't cross running water, and there's a silver mine not too far from here we can hide in. Ulric won't enter a place that has silver lined through out its walls," Shannon suggested hopefully, snapping her fingers eagerly.  
  
D shook his head, causing his raven locks to fly about his face. He replied, "No. Silver amplifies magic. While the mine will give you protection against Ulric, Anne, and Yin-Xi, Swan and Moira can enter with ease."  
  
Shannon's head was throbbing. She sighed as she headed for the door. "Fine. I'll tell everyone to take cover. Any suggestions?"  
  
"Crosses will not hurt and will give protection against the two vampires of Belle Morte. If any of the townspeople have guns with silver bullets, tell them to keep them at hand at all times. As for the witch, there is nothing I can offer you," D answered simply as he opened the door for her.  
  
Shannon sighed and said, "Well, let's get this over with."  
****** Night had fallen on Lichpin, blanketing it in a velvety darkness. It was a clear night and the three-quarter moon blanketed the landscape in a ghostly day. Thousands of stars twinkled obliviously in the sky. A cool breeze chased away the heat of the day and was the only sound heard for miles.  
  
The residents of Lichpin had gone to various hiding places all except a certain few that were still being evacuated. Mainly Giles.  
  
D stood at the town's entrance facing the mountain where the castle was established. His sword was already naked in his hand. His body was loose, ready for fluid movement. The breeze toyed with strands of his hair and cape, making it wave behind him.  
  
"The townspeople are safe for the most part," Giles' voice drifted behind D.  
  
D turned his head to look at the retired vampire hunter. Giles had taken off his glasses, his keen eyes surveying the land around them. D noticed that there was a scar running down Giles forehead and he was wearing a gold hoop earing in his left ear while there had not been one before.  
  
D replied, "You should join them."  
  
"I may be an old man, hunter, but I was once a hunter too and I want to die like one," Giles said, placing his hands in his pockets.  
  
D replied, "The townspeople need you to protect them. Shannon and her brother."  
  
"Little Donny pitched a fit. He wanted to see you kill those, 'Undead leeches'. His words, not mine," Giles told D fondly, shaking his head a tiny bit.  
  
D gave Giles a meaningful look and Giles sighed. "You won't take no for an answer, will you?"  
  
"No. Incase I should fail, they will need you," D pointed out as he saw something move in the distance. His eyes narrowed as he watched the speck of movement as it became four specks of movement. The hair on the back of his neck rose as he sensed what was coming.  
  
Giles asked, "What is it, D?"  
  
"Protect Shannon and Donny, this has become more complicated," D stated as he took a stance, his sword an extension of his body.  
  
Giles looked at the horizon with narrowed eyes. He cursed, "Bloody hell . . ." He then sighed and began to turn away. He placed his hand on D's shoulder.  
  
D tilted his head to look at the old man.  
  
Giles said, "Good luck, you're going to need it."  
  
D simply nodded as Giles ran off.  
  
****** "Goodie, he didn't leave," Anne said with a smirk as they stood on the outskirts of town. Swan was beside her, an arm wrapped around her waist possessively. Soon she'd have another, prettier dhampire to play with. Much, much prettier, she thought as she looked at D.  
  
Moira was standing a bit off to the side, her eyes close as she chanted in that odd, lyrical language. She was floating a piece of some sort of dark crystal between her palms. Her chestnut hair was blowing behind her by an unfelt wind.  
  
Ulric threw back his head and howled at the moon. Anne looked at the werewolf in disgust as he shed his human form for the more lupine shape. She watched as hands became claws and a human head became wolfish.  
  
Moira kept chanting and the crystal glowed a dark magenta. The wind picked up till leaves and her hair were blowing in swirling eddies around her. She stopped moving and her chanting became louder as a satisfied look crossed her features.  
  
Swan stated, "Looks like they evacuated the town."  
  
"Silly rabbits," Anne chuckled as she cracked her knuckles, "Like lambs to the slaughter."  
  
Moira whispered, "You may begin. Remember. Our lady wants the hunter alive."  
  
"Yes, it would be such a shame to kill him," Swan replied viciously, flashing his fangs.  
  
Anne smiled as she took her whip from her belt. She cracked it and grinned when it's satisfying snap rang out almost as loudly as the wolf's howling. She coiled the whip up and held it with both hands.  
  
"Let's begin," she purred as she headed up the parade.  
  
****** D watched as the four members of Belle Morte approached. He narrowed his eyes. Five, there are five members. Where's Yin-Xi? Why isn't she here?  
  
Ulric had transformed. Saliva ran down his mouth and fangs in clear ribbons. His furry body heaved with each breath. He growled at D, wiggling clawed fingers in anticipation.  
  
"Well, well, the pretty dhampire is all alone," Anne said in a singsong voice as she let her whip trail to the ground.  
  
Moira, the witch, was holding a hovering dark crystal that glowed with magenta energy. It floated between her palms as she chanted. Leaves and her hair whirled around her in a circular motion as she worked her spell. D made note to watch her.  
  
Swan looked at Moira and quietly asked her, "How long do you need?"  
  
"Five minutes at most to finish this spell," she answered as she looked at D with glowing violet eyes, "Don't let him close in on you."  
  
Ulric laughed and replied, "He'll be begging for death in . . ."  
  
D didn't let him finish his boast. He jumped through the air, his sword swinging down before his body landed. Ulric looked up and jumped up as well to ward him off.  
  
The werewolf growled and gnashed his claws at D. D twisted to the side and simply held his sword out. Ulric's motion and the curve of the blade did the rest.  
  
The werewolf's yellow eyes widened as he lurched. He choked and blood bubbled from his lips and fell to the ground. Ulric held his chest and mid- section, stumbling forward, his eyes wide with disbelief. He turned his face toward D as he held out a bloody hand toward the dhampire.  
  
"Fuck . . ." Ulric chuckled, more blood pouring grotesquely from his mouth.  
  
In a diagonal line from under his left arm to his right side, the top part of his body slid to the ground, blood spurting from the wound. D brought up his sword again and swooped it down. The werewolf's head bounced to the ground seconds after his torso.  
  
"He killed Ulric," Swan said. His green eyes were wide and blinking as D turned toward him. He snapped his arm, shaking the blood from his precious sword. Anne brought her arm up to strike with the whip.  
  
Swan held something in his hands that grew into a shining staff. He spun it with capable hands in a complicated, showy arc. D wasn't impressed.  
  
He rushed the vampire and her lover.  
  
Anne sprang to the side, cracking her whip. D let its tip graze against his sword as he deflected the blow. Swan swung the staff at D, but D parried the blow.  
  
Both of them stepped back, readying their weapons again. D charged at Anne. She couldn't use her whip to deflect his sword. She jumped back at the first swipe, taking to the air and hovering.  
  
He heard a faint flicker of movement behind him. The staff whistled slightly as it was brought down toward him. D simply brought his sword up and behind him, catching the staff. He spun around sharply, the blade scraping against the staff and pushing it back.  
  
Swan's eyes widened as D pushed him back. He knocked the other dhampire off balance to counter with his sword. The blade went down and Swan was barely able to roll away from it. However, it did catch some of his long, almost white hair; sheering it from his head.  
  
Swan sprang to his feet with a savage snarl displaying his lengthening fangs, the green eyes bleeding to crimson. He spun the staff over his head, making it hum and whistle in the night air. He took an offensive stance and charged at D.  
  
D side stepped most of the blows and only had to parry one of them with his sword.  
  
"Stand still, damn you!" Swan hissed, saliva dripping from his fangs.  
  
He continued his onslaught with his staff. D heard the crack of a whip right before its edge bit into his shoulder. His armor absorbed the impact, but the whip had managed to damage the plating.  
  
He looked up to see Anne bring back her arm again to attack. D jumped out of the way to narrowly avoid her next strike. She snapped back her arm again and the whip's edge went shooting toward him.  
  
At the same time, Swan swung his staff at him again.  
  
With his left hand, D caught the whip and used his right to block the staff with his sword. Anne began to yank. The rope bit into D's hand as she pulled with her vampiric strength. She took to the air again and D had to brace himself to keep from going with her. He kept his hold on the whip, not willing to let her have that weapon again.  
  
The whip cut into his palm and he could feel the parasite's irritation at being injured. D jerked to the side and ran behind Swan. Swan brought up the staff again to hit D. D wrapped his end of the whip around Swan's slender wrists and jerked it hard.  
  
Swan went crashing to the ground and Anne had to let go of the whip so she wouldn't follow him. D rushed to the fallen dhampire with his sword ready. Swan's crimson eyes widened as D prepared to strike the killing blow.  
  
"Moira!" Anne screamed.  
  
Magenta lightning split the sky, growling in rage. D heard the lyrical chanting as it picked up speed and pitch. Wind suddenly raged around the three, catching D's cape and whipping it around like a windsock. His hair was in his eyes and his hat was blown from his head.  
  
It was growing colder. D found it hard to move. He was having trouble seeing. His vision was blurring and each tiny movement seemed more impossible than the last.  
  
However, he did manage to raise his left hand.  
  
"You're gonna pay for that thing with the whip, D," the Symbiote said dryly as the eyes, nose, and mouth formed from the flesh on D's palm. The mouth stretched open impossibly wide as it began to suck the magic that Moira was casting. D braced himself as Left Hand swallowed the spell at an impressive rate.  
  
Anne shouted, "His hand, Swan, stop his hand!"  
  
Moira's eyes were glowing as her chanting became intenser and even more focused. The crystal was vibrating wildy in her hands as she continued to cast her spell. Her hair fanned around her as the magenta light from her crystal grew.  
  
Distracted by sucking the spell, Swan was behind him. The metal staff struck against the back of D's head hard. D wobbled but did not fall. He spun around to parry the next blow with his right as he still kept his left arm extended as the parasite continued to swallow the spell.  
  
Anne caught his right hand with her whip and Swan took the moment to bring the pipe down hard upon D's right wrist. Reflexively, his hand uncurled around the sword's handle. Swan caught the sword and snarled.  
  
With one clean swipe, he severed D's left hand from his wrist.  
  
As the pale hand fell to the ground, the spell hit D like a well planned blow. He froze as he was lifted from the ground. Dark bands of energy wrapped themselves around D like chains, positively unbreakable.  
  
Moira walked over to him. Her chest rose with each labored breath. Her skin shone with sweat and she was wobbling slightly. She clutched her crystal with her left hand.  
  
"A symbiotic demon. You're full of tricks," she panted as D was tilted to her level. He glared at her wordlessly.  
  
Then she placed the icy crystal upon D's forehead.  
  
He heard Anne say, "For a second, I thought we were dead, Moira."  
  
With that, he blacked out.  
  
****** "Oh, damn, this isn't good," Morgan groaned as she noticed that the town was empty. Completely deserted. She stepped out of her mobile support vehicle and looked around.  
  
She walked into town and frowned at the werewolf cut in three pieces. "Someone got hack happy," she said dryly as she noted how clean and fine the cuts were.  
  
She continued to look around until she saw a sword lying on the ground. A very familiar and long sword. It was almost seven feet tall with a long, delicately curved blade.  
  
Morgan bent down and picked up D's sword. Just a few feet away from it were droplets of fresh blood. D's scent was still in the air as well as the sharp tang of the ozone smell of magic.  
  
She clutched the sword to herself as she looked around. There was no tall, lean body dressed in black armor with a matching cape. No head of impossibly beautiful black hair, pearlescent skin and delicate features. No sign of D other than the sword. That only meant that Circe had the hunter in her clutches now.  
  
Morgan sat down on the ground as she studied the sword. The sword that had been responsible for more vampires' deaths that she could count. Even more than the ones she had killed from what rumors had said.  
  
"Oh, D, I'm sorry," she said sadly.  
  
Morgan could barely imagine what Circe would do to someone who looked like D. Her hand absently rubbed her breast. She could almost feel those fangs in her again as that icy mouth sucked the very life from her.  
  
And she had no idea where the castle was at to go make her last stand against Circe and perhaps save D.  
  
"He didn't deserve this," she said sadly as she looked up at the sky. She shouted, "He didn't deserve this!"  
  
A nasal, hoarse voice like an old man's said, "Honey, D doesn't deserve a lot of the shit he takes from people, but he does it anyway."  
  
Morgan pulled out her Glock and looked around. She turned off the safety as she looked around. She hissed, "Show yourself."  
  
She felt fingers lightly tap her hip. Startled, she spun around to see something that startled even her jaded eyes. "What the fuck?"  
  
It was a hand with pearlescent skin and long, slender fingers. It was standing up on its index fingers. It had a face with beady eyes, a tiny nose, and a disproportionately big mouth that was upside down. It wiggled its fingers in greeting at her.  
  
"Heyia, babe," it said sarcastically.  
  
Morgan let out a startled yelp and aimed her gun at it.  
  
The hand stated, "You can't kill me."  
  
"What are you, Thing Adams?" Morgan quipped as she put her gun back in its shoulder holster.  
  
The hand replied, "No, I'm part of D."  
  
"Come again?" she asked, stooping forward so she could study it. To her horror it started to stare at her breasts. Growling, she picked it up and turned it right side up.  
  
It sighed in relief and answered, "I'm D's Left Hand. It's a long, complicated story, but we both want the same thing right now."  
  
"You were staring at my tits!" Morgan snapped at it, shaking it slightly.  
  
To her revulsion, it grinned at her. "And what nice tits they are babe. I told D he should have tried to hook up with you. Despite the fact that you're a vampire and all."  
  
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't blow you to bits?" Morgan asked, glaring at the thing. Then she grumbled, "I'm talking to the undead version of Thing. Now I've seen everything."  
  
It answered, "Because we both want to kill Circe and save D. We've got common goals here, toots. So, lets join forces and get me attached back to my host so we can kill Circe."  
  
"And how am I suppose to believe you?" Morgan answered, scowling at it.  
  
The damned thing grinned at her again. It answered, "Well, Kirsten, your fiancé was Chris Campbell and was killed by Circe. He also wrote cheesy vampire novels."  
  
"Chris' novels weren't cheesy," Morgan grumbled as she stood up, holding the hand in one hand and D's sword in the other.  
  
The hand chuckled and said, "Well, come on. We can't save D moping around here. He does enough of it as it is."  
  
Morgan lifted an eyebrow and asked, "And you know where Circe's at?"  
  
"Honey, I'm a demonic parasite. I can see and do things that you can't. I just happen to be attached to D. Now, lets get going," it retorted.  
  
Morgan turned back to her vehicle and snapped, "No wonder D's so distant all the time if you're the only thing that he can communicate with. I'd be bitchy too."  
  
"Morgan, you're bitch on your own," it told her dryly.  
  
She found herself grinning despite herself and retorted, "Thank you very much. It's a long and hard process, but it pays off in the long run."  
  
To her surprise, it was actually laughing at her.  
  
To Be Continued.  
  
Each of the song quotes at the begging of each chapter have something in common: they are all sung by Tool lead singer Manyard James Keenan. Manyard is also the lead singer of A Perfect Circle, which sounds like a more feminine version of Tool. I highly recommend both Tool and A Perfect Circle to you rock fans, however, both bands touch upon delicate subject matter. Especially A Perfect Circle's "Judith" and almost every Tool song written.  
  
Also, the idea of this story was greatly inspired by the movie "Kill Bill". The character Morgan was greatly inspired by the Bride, right down to her losing her baby. However, the idea of a vampire killing its Sire for vengeance is an old one and still a good plot point.  
  
Finally, this story is peppered with at least a dozen different vampire pop culture references. Lets see if you can spot them. Giles was the easy one, so don't mention him.  
  
Don't forget to feed the writer and review! 


	5. Chapter Four: Beautiful Death

Disclaimer: Vampire Hunter D is the property of its creator, Hideuki Kikuchi. I do not own D or any of the characters related to the novel series.  
  
Warning: This story is rated R for language, violence, adult situations, and sexual content.  
  
Author's Notes: Special thanks the VHD Yahoo! Posting Board for their information on D, his sexuality, and so on and so forth. Special thanks also goes to Psi Yamaneko for her insights on D, his personality, sexuality, and ideas for this story; like the names. Sorry, but Forest wasn't going to play the victim this time, Psi.  
  
I dedicate this story to Akemi and Psi, D's a dish, and we all know it.  
  
Weak and Powerless  
Chapter Four: Beautiful Death  
By: Elf  
Lying to myself again  
Suicidal imbecile  
Think about it, put it on the faultline  
What'll it take to get it through to you precious  
Come on to this, why do you wanna throw it away like this  
Such a bitch, why do I wanna watch you  
"The Outsider" By: A Perfect Circle  
  
"Are you sure this is it?" Morgan asked, looking up.  
  
The side of the mountain was shrouded completely in a thick, violet-grey fog. The fog seemed to have a life of its own, swirling as if it was alive. There were fanciful eddies in the thick pea soup that had tiny violet eyes, like miniature hurricanes.  
  
D's Left Hand, which was currently perched on her shoulder, asked, "Have you ever seen fog like that, Morgan?"  
  
"No. It looks like something L. Frank Balm would have come up while smoking crack," Morgan retorted.  
  
The upside down mouth grinned at her as it replied, "Then that has to be it. Besides, don't you feel it. The power. Close your eyes and focus."  
  
"This is ridiculous. No wonder D's so morose all the time," Morgan groused as she shut her eyes. She did focus and all the hair on her body felt as if it were standing up straight on end.  
  
Her eyes opened and her mouth dropped. "Holy shit."  
  
Left Hand chuckled, "That's Magic you're feeling, princess. Your technology and big guns mean jack to it, baby. You're a vampire. Act like it."  
  
"I won't become a monster," Morgan replied as she brought out her rifle. She stepped cautiously through the fog. She gasped as it felt like someone had prickled her with thousands of needles of ice. Then the feeling changed to something warm and soft, soothing as she stepped through the fog. Suddenly a giant, gothic castle complete with Flying Buttresses loomed in front of her.  
  
Morgan whistled and quipped, "Maybe I should if I could live in a place like this."  
  
"Babe, hate to break this to you, but you're not alive," Left Hand retorted.  
  
Morgan glared down at the appendage.  
  
"It's a matter of speech, Lefty," she snapped back.  
  
The hand glared at her and retorted, "Don't call me 'Lefty' baby."  
  
"Come on, we're going in," Morgan stated as she boldly walked to the door.  
  
Her whole being was tingling in anticipation. One way or another, it was going to be over tonight.  
  
****** The first thing he became aware of was that it was cold.  
  
He was cold. Chilled air drifted around him, hitting places that should be covered, teasing sensitive flesh. It drew tiny ripples from his skin as he suppressed the very human urge to shiver.  
  
The second thing he became aware of was the pain in his left wrist. It was a faint, phantom pain, but it was still there. Frowning, he realized that the left hand was missing.  
  
The third thing he became aware of was that his arms felt heavy and were suspended above his head. Automatically, he tried to jerk them down but found that all he could do was shift them slightly. He tried to bring them down again, even harder, but his reward was the jingle of chains rattling together.  
  
D scowled as he opened his eyes.  
  
He was completely naked and chained up in a dungeon. He tugged at the chains shackling his wrists, testing them. His scowl deepened as he realized he couldn't break them.  
  
He also sensed that he wasn't the only person in the room.  
  
He could smell roses, leather, blood and the musky scent of sex. He turned toward the scent, the chains clanging almost musically as he did. In the semi-darkness he saw the voluptuous form of a woman lounging in an overstuffed chair.  
  
Garnet eyes flickered over his slim, lithe form appreciatively. A catlike tongue flickered from the vampiress' lips hungrily as she watched. She stood up and walked over to him, her curvy body swaying becomingly as she walked. Her long crimson ringlets tumbled past her waist. She wore a black leather corset that set off her hour glass figure perfectly.  
  
"You are the most beautiful man I have ever seen," the Lady Circe Delarosa purred as she ran a leather clad finger down D's throat and chest, stopping to splay her hand flat upon his stomach.  
  
D felt a wave of revolution at the Noble's appreciative and hungry look and at her touching him. His first instinct was to fight back and get away from her touch. He wanted to cringe, look away, and hide. However, to do so would to show weakness.  
  
So he simply asked, "What do you want?"  
  
"To play with my new toy," Circe answered, standing on point to nuzzle his throat. Her free hand went up and curled a lock of D's wavy hair between her fingers. D watched as she studied the lock in fascination. His heart was pounding in his chest as he fought the urge to jerk away.  
  
She chuckled as she placed a finger under his chin to tilt it up. At this he did snap his head away. She grabbed his chin and forced him to look at her. His eyes narrowed to angry slits as hers gleamed lazily up at him. She chuckled before she pressed her lips against his.  
  
D tried to jerk away at the feel of those cold lips against his. However, Circe was holding his head so he couldn't move. Her mouth moved against his, demanding that he surrender. He pulled at his chains almost frantically with trembling arms as he fought her.  
  
Her bare leg rubbed against his thigh as she continued her forceful kiss. He closed his eyes as he kept his own mouth tightly shut. However, that curvy body continued to writhe against his when her tongue flickered across his lips, demanding entrance. Without warning, she invaded his mouth with that probing kiss.  
  
She tasted like blood. D's right hand was clinched in a tight fist as he refused to give in. One of her hands gripped the hair at the nape of his neck as the other roamed down the sleek, powerful lines of D's back before moving to his front. She moved to caress him and D jerked his head away from hers.  
  
"Don't touch me," he snarled, feeling his tightly reined control slipping. He felt his fangs starting to lengthen in his mouth as his blood raged in his body, crying out for darkness.  
  
She threw back her head and laughed. She asked, "Or what?"  
  
D glared at her as she moved back to him. Her hand absently caressed his chest. "What is my virgin captive going to do? Gnash his fangs at me while I deliver him to the edge? My sweet pet, there is nothing you can do against me. I am eternal. I am a Noble. I can't be stopped."  
  
"Your time is limited here, Circe. I may not stop you, but there are others who will," D replied stonily.  
  
Circe asked, "Oh, like whom?"  
  
At that moment, an explosion echoed throughout the castle.  
  
****** "This is your plan!?" The parasite squealed as Morgan threw a grenade into the great hall of the castle. It exploded in a rage of fire that took out part of the cold stone walls and all the tapestries that depicted sexual acts. She grinned in satisfaction as she yanked the pin out of another one with her teeth. She tossed it down the hole she just created. The detonation rang out through the castle.  
  
Morgan pulled out her rifle with a grin. She answered, "How did you guess?"  
  
"You're insane!" the hand snapped as the fingers dug into her shoulder.  
  
Morgan chuckled, "I have issues." She pulled out another grenade from the belt that hung across her chest. She was armed for vampire and carrying enough weaponry to support a small third-world country. But third-world countries don't exist anymore! I'm a one-leech arsenal!  
  
I'm coming for you, Circe, and its going to be over . . .  
  
Left Hand continued, "You're worse than D!"  
  
"But I'm funnier than he is. He doesn't have my fang sharp wit," Morgan quipped snidely as she pulled the pin and threw the grenade she was holding. The castle rocked with the explosion. She grinned in satisfaction.  
  
Left Hand snapped, "But D doesn't try to blow me up either!"  
  
"Hush, I'm hunting nymphomaniac vampire bitches who destroyed my life," Morgan chided, feeling almost giddy. She was going to kill Circe. She was finally going to get her vengeance. She could get her rest.  
  
Anne, Swan, and Moira appeared.  
  
Left Hand said, "We've got company."  
  
"I know. I was planning this. I'm the distraction and you're going to save D," she whispered to the symbioite.  
  
Anne cracked her whip. Moira was channeling some sort of dark energy between her palms. Swan regarded her with bored interest.  
  
"Come get some," Morgan quipped as she let Left Hand drop to the ground. She drew her rifle and aimed it at Moira.  
  
Moira lifted her hands up, the energy orb coursing with energy like garnets. Her lips were moving soundlessly as she finished her spell. Except, Morgan wasn't going to let her finish.  
  
She fired.  
  
Moira's violet eyes widened in surprise as blood dripped down her forehead. The magic fizzled out and faded into nothingness. The witch fell to her knees before falling on her face.  
  
"Magic may be all well and cool, but nothing stops a speeding bullet," Morgan smirked at the dhampire and the other vampire.  
  
****** "Swan was like you once," Circe mused as she studied D from where he was dangling. She was fingering the chains above his head, holding him helpless. There had been other explosions and even a gun shot, but she was ignoring it.  
  
At least she's not touching me anymore, D thought thankfully. The idea of those cold hands on him filled him with intense revolution. The thought of those icy lips upon his made him want to retch. However, the hint of blood in her mouth might be his undoing if she tried again.  
  
He was trapped by this mad vampire and he was helpless. He was ageless and she could keep him alive for eons. No matter how hard he struggled to resist her, in the end he would fall. Just as Morgan had and all the countless others before and after her. His being broken would just take longer, but what was time to the Noble?  
  
She continued, "Trying to be like the cattle. However, his true nature was brewing under the surface. He just needed some pushing, that's all. And look how well he turned out, a credit to his family. What about your father, D? What does he think of what you do?"  
  
"That he should have killed you himself," D truthfully answered, his eyes narrowed.  
  
Circe laughed and asked, "Who was your father, then? Dracula? The No Life King?"  
  
D wisely chose not to answer her question. He was not proud of his heritage. His royal blood line simply damned him to be alone and trying to fight the blood lust that tried to claim him every waking moment. The same bloodlust that kept him from leading a normal life with a wife and perhaps a couple of children. He was damned to walk between two worlds, but never be a part of either.  
  
Circe turned toward him and studied his face. He kept his expression impassive, not letting her see anything. She tilted his head as she watched him.  
  
"You seem lonely. See what happens when you fight your true nature? You've never felt the touch of another against that pale skin of yours. Never knew what it was like for reality to fade into bliss. Never knew what it's like to not know where your body ended and another's began. It must be a lonely existence, but I can change that for you," Circe mused, her garnet eyes hooded as she lifted her lips toward his again.  
  
He tilted his head up at the last moment. "It's not worth it to hurt an innocent. What is a few moments of my pleasure compared to the sixty years that mortal will get to live?" D retorted resentfully, his eyes narrowing to pale blue slits.  
  
At that moment, small Yin-Xi walked into the dungeon. She was dressed in a traditional Chinese red silk gi that brought out her exotic coloring. D thought he saw a flicker of anger flash through her sloe eyes before she turned to her mistress.  
  
"It's the blond vampire woman," Yin-Xi said in her light, pleasant sounding voice.  
  
Morgan. She's here . . .  
  
Circe's crimson eyes narrowed in rage as she asked, "What do you mean?"  
  
"She has killed Moira. I'm afraid that Swan and Anne will be next," Yin-Xi answered, her face a mask like a pretty doll's. D saw a flicker of satisfaction in the exotic vampire's eyes. She wants them dead. Why?  
  
Circe asked, "Can you handle her, my little tiger?"  
  
"I can kill her," Yin-Xi answered in that same emotionless, light, lyrical voice. She's a warrior. Like the Barbaroi. She has honor.  
  
Circe smirked and replied, "I don't want her dead. Can you stop her?"  
  
Yin-Xi placed a hand upon her small breasts and bowed respectfully. She turned away, her long braid swinging behind her. Her tiny form strode confidently out of the dungeon.  
  
Circe stroked D's cheek with a smile. "I'll be back, my beautiful pet. I promise."  
  
With that, she followed the vampire warrior, her body swaying seductively as she did.  
  
D looked up as he realized he had just been given a reprieve.  
  
And time to figure out a way to escape.  
  
****** Swan's blood curdling shriek was music to Morgan's ears. She smirked as she rose up, her grip like iron. Swan's fingers curled and uncurled from razor claws. Tears made his green eyes gleam like emeralds.  
  
She kept her hold on his groin and twisted.  
  
Morgan smirked up at the dhampire and asked, "So, where's your boss?"  
  
"Bitch," Anne snapped, the whip cracking, splitting the air.  
  
Morgan caught it with lighting fast reflexes. She wrapped it around her hand and jerked. Anne went flying. Morgan twisted in the opposite direction and Swan screamed even louder. Morgan chuckled, "I'm not nice like D is. I wasn't trained to be. I'll blow out your kneecaps if it will buy me time."  
  
"You have no honor," a light, pleasant sounding voice that Morgan recognized as Yin-Xi said behind her.  
  
Morgan turned to see the tiny Asian vampire standing there, holding a sword in each hand.  
  
Morgan shrugged and retorted, "My honor was taken from me a long time ago. So why the fuck should I care anymore?"  
  
"Then you will lose this battle," Yin-Xi stated as she stood formlessly with her blades. Her body could move into action in any moment. Morgan watched for tale-tell twitches in her limbs to see what direction she'd move.  
  
There wasn't any.  
  
Morgan had to throw Swan in front of the Asian vampire to avoid her swords. She managed to back step enough to regain her ground. She aimed her rifle, but the little bitch was quick. Like watching a Bruce Lee movie on fast forward . . .  
  
One of those Chinese swords sliced through her gun barrel.  
  
The second sword came swinging at her head.  
  
Just like in ROTC training, Morgan thrust her rifle up to deflect the sword blade. She nimbly rolled out of the way, holding the rifle out in front of her like a battering ram. Yin-Xi leapt up, landing on one foot on the butt of the gun, and kicking at Morgan's face.  
  
Morgan reeled back as her vision flashed with black and red. She felt bones in her neck snap as she tasted the coppery tang of her own blood. She landed in an ungraceful heap on the scorched floor. The other vampire took advantage of Morgan's plight and snap kicked her right under the chin.  
  
Morgan's head snapped back with a sickening crunch. She bit through her own tongue as she fell back with the blow. Her head, neck, and even shoulders exploded in agony.  
  
She managed to roll over and pull herself up with her arms. With a sickening hack, she choked up some of her own blood. The dark garnet ichor was smeared across the cool, grey stones. She gasped for unneeded air as her body worked to repair a snapped neck, broken jaw, and her ruined tongue.  
  
Sharp claws entangled themselves in her waist length hair. Morgan gave a tiny cry as she was wrenched up to her feet, her back bowed due to the force tugging mercilessly at her hair. There should be some rule about not being allowed to pull hair in a fight, she thought humorlessly as Anne yanked her to her feet. The smaller vampire's blue eyes were snapping with anger. She gave Morgan a vicious back hand, still holding onto her hair. Morgan braced herself from the blow; it didn't even throw her off balance.  
  
"My dead mother hits harder than that," Morgan chuckled.  
  
Anne rewarded her sarcasm with another slap. "You bitch," Anne hissed, "You traitorous bitch!"  
  
Anne yanked her hand free of Morgan's hair. Unfortunately, her claws were entangled in Morgan's waist length hair. Morgan grit her teeth as a large hank of hair was torn out of her head. Anne had strands of gold dangling from her fingers.  
  
Morgan stood to her full height. She could smell Swan standing behind her, their bodies almost touching. "Don't try anything," the dhampire purred in her ear, reaching out to smooth out her hair.  
  
Morgan grinned darkly as she warned in a light voice, "Don't touch me."  
  
"Why not?" he asked. Those long pale fingers trailed down her arms. His breath was warm on her neck, blowing on it slightly. Morgan's eyes flashed with anger as he continued to pet her.  
  
She grabbed his left arm with her right hand. She brought it across her shoulder as she twisted to the side and angled her shoulders and head down. He went flying into Anne.  
  
Morgan grinned as she took a stance. "Because I'll touch you back."  
  
Yin-Xi was in action again, legs and blades flying. Morgan dodged as best as she could. As she picked up her rifle to shield herself from the swords, she realized that she'd lose to the Asian vampire. It was like Bruce Lee fighting Steven Segal and she was Steven Segal. She didn't have a chance in Hell.  
  
Yin-Xi's foot connected with Morgan's chest. Then her fist into Morgan's face. Morgan stumbled back as the smaller vampire continued to pummel her into submission.  
  
"My tigress, stand back," a familiar, singsong purring voice said, breaking the sounds of blades singing and the sickening sound of flesh pounding upon relenting flesh.  
  
Morgan looked up.  
  
Her eyes widened in horror as she felt her blood run cold. Thousands of years went away. She was transported back when she had been chained from the wall, cold and naked, while her Chris trembled in fear. Where she had been abused and had everything she had ever loved stolen away from her only to be given an immortality of rage.  
  
"There's my solder. I was wondering what happened to you," the Lady Circe Delarosa purred as her garnet eyes flickered over Morgan's battered form.  
  
Morgan started to shake with suppressed fury. Circe was standing there in full Merry Widow corseted glory, her blood red curls tumbling around that statuesque body. Her face was just as beautiful as Morgan had remembered it, but then again, Circe was ageless.  
  
Morgan snarled as she jumped over Anne and Swan's heads, claws unleashed, as she charged right toward Circe.  
  
The Noble simply held out her hand.  
  
Power hit Morgan like a fist. It tingled along her body as if ants were crawling under her skin. Her body cried out in agony as she was thrown into a wall.  
  
Circe approached, her head tilted as she looked at Morgan curiously. "I do love the hair. It's more becoming than that boyish cut you had when I first saw you, my solder. And I knew you would be back."  
  
"Fuck you," Morgan spat, more blood splattering her lips.  
  
Circe knelt down to gently push strands of Morgan's hair from her face. Morgan glared as Circe's icy hand cupped her cheek. She almost retched when Circe's frigid lips pressed forcefully against hers. Automatically, she bit the other woman, snapping her head back and pressing herself against the wall to escape.  
  
Circe chuckled, "I plan to, darling. You ran away from me once, but you will not run away from me again. You will willingly join Belle Morte. I promise you this."  
  
Morgan glared up defiantly.  
  
****** D tugged at the chains furiously. Again, nothing was happening. However, he was hoping that he could pull lose the toggle that was holding the chains at the ceiling. It would be weaker than the chains and if he could get down he could kill Circe and the rest of Belle Morte.  
  
Teeth gritted, he gave another yank. He heard something bend above his head. He tilted his head back to look up at the ceiling. The bolt was starting to bend.  
  
Any other man would have smiled in satisfaction. However, D's eyes narrowed as he began to tug again. He felt it continue to give in inches.  
  
"You know, she'll be back up here before you have freed yourself," a familiar, nasal voice taunted.  
  
D looked down to see his Left Hand walking on its fingers like some macabre crab. The parasite continued, "You know, maybe I should just leave you hanging like this. Might serve you right."  
  
"Get me down," D commanded in his monotone. However, he was actually glad to see the parasite. The thing huffed as it climbed D's body. "You're a slave driver. You don't treat me with respect and you're a general pain in my ass. If I had an ass," Left Hand grumbled, his voice muffled as the parasite's mouth pressed into D's flesh as it climbed.  
  
"Shut up and get me down," D demanded as it finally reached the chains.  
  
Left Hand continued its grouching, "Not 'Would you please get me down?' but he tells me to shut up and get him down. I'm a good parasite, most of the time. I have both of our interests in mind you know. But still, Mr. Stoicism makes his huffy demands."  
  
D glared up at it as it actually began to chew on the manacles holding his right stump. The creature would devour the metal, leaving nothing behind. It seemingly had an endless capacity: it could eat anything: metal, dirt, and powerful magic. It also had a vast knowledge on the occult and D's father that it would divulge if D needed or it felt like torturing his host or annoying D.  
  
"Hurry," D stated.  
  
Left Hand snorted, its mouth full of steel. He retorted, "You wanna save that vampire, don't you? Morgan. She came after you, you know. She's on this stupid mission of vengeance, but you already knew that. Well, I've got your sword in the next room. The nympho kept your clothing and armor in there as well. Morgan lost your hat though. I can see why you like her, she's more reckless than you are. Cuter too. Just that she's a vampire. Well, at least you don't have to worry about ripping her throat out. Just think of it D. You can get laid now!"  
  
"You drug my sword in here?" D asked, hope rising within him. He had his sword. He had a chance against Circe and the rest of Belle Morte.  
  
Left Hand snorted, "No, I just said I've got your sword in the next room because I was being a smart ass. Of course I have your sword! In the next room. Couldn't free you and hold it with my pinky at the same time. You know how fucking heavy it is without you holding it. I swear D."  
  
D lowered his right arm. He brought the Left Hand over to the sealed stump of his left arm. The parasite transferred over and began to eat through the metal. When it was finished, the creature reattached himself to the stump, grafting the hand back on.  
  
D flexed the fingers of his left hand, satisfied. The stone floor was cold on his bare feet. He sniffed the air delicately, like a cat, making sure that there was no one near by.  
  
He exited the dungeon and entered what looked like to be an elaborate bedroom. It reeked of musk, blood, and fear. A fire was flickering gently in the fire place, casting the room in an orange haze. There were candles adding their soft, golden glow to the room's darkness.  
  
Lying on a table was D's clothing and armor. On the floor in front of the table was the high frequency blade. He walked over to it and dressed quickly. He didn't have time to bother with the armor, so he simply gathered his sword.  
  
The weight felt reassuring in his hands, as it always did. The sword was a part of him, and he an extension of it. Together, they were the perfect example of how weapon and warrior should almost be indistinguishable from one and another.  
  
D heard soft foot falls, heavier than a woman's. It had to be Swan. As the footsteps approached, D heard the soft, slow murmur of a heartbeat. That confirmed his suspicions.  
  
The door opened.  
  
D struck.  
  
Swan didn't even have a chance.  
  
The green eyes widened as the white-haired dhampire bowed over D's sword. Blood trickled down the blade in crimson ribbons before dribbling to the floor. Swan looked up, his white hair obscuring his face. He gasped, blood spilling from his mouth. D thrust up for the killing blow.  
  
"You're on the wrong side," Swan rasped, pushing himself off the blade. Somehow, he was still standing, his body bowed ever so slightly. He wobbled as he stood there though, the green eyes darkening, fading.  
  
D looked at the other dhampire. He was a symbol of everything D was afraid of becoming. A symbol of why D continued to fight and slay his father's kind.  
  
D asked, "Where's Morgan?"  
  
"Downstairs, with Lady Circe and the others, damn you. That bitch killed Moira," Swan rasped, choking more blood and sinking to his knees.  
  
D's eyes narrowed. Good, the witch was dead which left the three vampires. Killing Anne would be simple. He'd have to strike quick with Circe, but he had faced more powerful Nobles before, like Count Lee. However, Yin-Xi concerned him. She was a warrior and fought beyond her vampire abilities.  
  
"You know what Circe's going to do to her?" Swan gasped, laughing before it turned into a hacking cough. He fell again, supporting himself with one arm. His breath was becoming more and more shallow. His father's heritage was making him linger. D knew it would be moments before he died.  
  
D answered, "Nothing. And you abandoned your human heritage, gave into the bloodlust."  
  
"And who's the happier one of us, D? You might be alive, but I lived more than you," Swan managed before gracefully sinking to the ground. His green eyes were glazed over, like a dead fish's. His heart ceased to beat. He was dead.  
  
D swept out to save Morgan.  
  
However, the Left Hand groused, "Bastard brat. You deserved what you got. Don't let him get to you, D."  
  
****** The whip whistled through the air before cracking on impact. The stinging lash caused Morgan to growl and arch away. Cold blood flowed down her back from the cross hatching of whip wounds that Anne was delighting on inflicting on her.  
  
Morgan was bound, nude (seemed to be a theme when captured by Circe, the vampire noticed), spread eagled and arms apart in some sort of metal ring that could spin. In the dim light the metal gleamed. Morgan had tried ripping through the bondage, but she couldn't. So it had to be silver.  
  
The whip cracked again, lancing more red-hot pain through Morgan's back.  
  
In front of her, Circe was watching with a cattish smile gracing her ripe lips. Beside her Yin-Xi, her pet "tigress", was standing obediently, her eyes staring at a spot at the wall. Morgan swore she saw something like disgust toward Anne and Circe flash through those almond-shaped sloe eyes.  
  
Behind her was Anne. Anne and her whip. The whip she was currently cracking against the vulnerable flesh of Morgan's back. Every time the wounds would heal, Anne would start again. After those healed, she would crack her whip again. Over and over in a vicious cycle because she was a bitch. I'm going to kill her. Everyone in this room.  
  
As the whip cracked again, Morgan noted that Swan hadn't returned yet. Circe had sent him down to check on D. He hadn't been back for a few minutes.  
  
Maybe Left Hand got to D. Maybe he'll escape, Morgan hoped thoughtfully, wondering why the hell she hoped that he got away so badly. Maybe because he's better than me. He doesn't deserve this. I've had this happen to me before, I can survive it. And once I kill Circe, it won't matter ever again.  
  
Morgan flinched as the whip missed her back and grazed her buttocks. She bit back a cry as she clinched her fists. She clinched her eyes shut as the untouched flesh throbbed in agony.  
  
"I chose you to be part of Belle Morte all of those years ago. I need someone with your skills, dear Kirsten. Sadly, you ran away, even after I gave you life eternal," Circe lamented with a sigh.  
  
Morgan spat, "Kirsten's dead. I'm Morgan, and all you did was send me to Hell, you vampire whore."  
  
"Shut up. You do not talk to Lady Circe like that," Anne snapped as she brought the whip down again.  
  
Morgan squeezed her eyes shut and snorted, "You know, your boytoy's been gone for a while. Wonder what happened to him? Maybe D escaped."  
  
Morgan tilted her head back and almost laughed at the look of horror dawning on Anne's pretty face. Anne cried, "Mistress, she's right! Maybe I should go up after Swan."  
  
At that moment, the door opened.  
  
Standing there, his raven hair tumbling wildly around him, was D. His silvery blue eyes were alight with a calm focus. Without his hat, Morgan could clearly see his face. Indeed, he was beautiful. The most beautiful man she'd ever seen, and, from what she had known of D, that beauty was more than skin deep. His sword was ready at his hands.  
  
Morgan almost cheered.  
  
She looked at Circe and smirked. "Say your prayers, bitch."  
  
With that, D lunged at Anne.  
  
To Be Concluded. 


	6. Chapter Five: Endings and Beginnings

Disclaimer: Vampire Hunter D is the property of its creator, Hideuki Kikuchi. I do not own D or any of the characters related to the novel series.  
  
Warning: This story is rated R for language, violence, adult situations, and sexual content.   
  
Author's Notes: Special thanks the VHD Yahoo! Posting Board for their information on D, his sexuality, and so on and so forth. Special thanks also goes to Psi Yamaneko for her insights on D, his personality, sexuality, and ideas for this story; like the names. Sorry, but Forest wasn't going to play the victim this time, Psi.   
  
I dedicate this story to Akemi and Psi, D's a dish, and we all know it.  
  
Weak and Powerless  
  
Chapter Five: Endings and Beginnings  
  
By: Elf  
  
I fell again  
  
Like a baby unable to stand on my own  
  
Tail in hand  
  
Dizzy and clearly unable to just this go  
  
High and surrendering to the gravity and the unknown  
  
Catch me heal me lift me back up to the sun  
  
I choose to live, I choose to live, I choose to live  
  
A Perfect Circle, Gravity  
  
D burst into the room, hair flying wildly around him. The smell of blood hung thick in the air as it dripped down Morgan's pale, healing back. Circe had bound Morgan and allowed Anne to sadistically play with her whip, scoring the pearlescent flesh.   
  
Morgan had her own blood smeared all over her body. Her golden hair was even crimson in places from various, already healed injuries. They could hurt her over and over again, and she would heal to take the punishment anew.  
  
He struck at Anne, senses open yet focused on nothing.   
  
The vampire drew her whip back to strike, but D angled his blade and twisted sharply and repeatedly in alternating directions. The vampire's blue eyes widened as D jerked back sharply and her whip came spinning out of her hand. He simply reached up and caught it.  
  
"Magnificent," Circe breathed, toying with one of her blood red curls between her nimble fingers.  
  
Anne tugged sharply at the whip, trying to yank it from D's hands. Instead, he wrapped it around his hand and gave it a sudden tug to the side. It flew from her hands and hit the ground.  
  
From the corner of his eye, he saw Yin-Xi start to usher Circe out of the room.  
  
"My lady, I must get you out of here," the Asian vampire said in her soft voice as she shepherded the voluptuous noble out of the room.  
  
Circe's hungry garnet eyes passed over Morgan's writhing body hungrily. "But my lost weapon . . . We have to get her, my tigress," Circe said firmly.  
  
Anne snarled as she took to the air to swoop down at D. D turned to the side and thrust his sword up. He felt flesh and bone give as it tore up through her body. Blood trickled down the blade in crimson rivulets as Anne's crimson eyes looked down at him.  
  
"D, they're getting away! That bitch is getting away!" Morgan screamed, her voice somewhere between sobbing and growling with rage.  
  
D said nothing as he jerked his sword up through Anne's body. The vampire jerked, her hands twitching wildy. With a twist, her head fell off her shoulders.  
  
D lowered his sword; Anne's body hardly weighed anything. He drew the sword out and shook off the blood. The sweet, coppery scent inflamed his nostrils but he suppressed it as he strode over to where Morgan was bound.  
  
She was twisting furiously, the silver cutting into her wrists and ankles. "She's getting away, D! Let me the fuck out of here before she gets away! I have to kill her! D, get me out of here!" the blond vampire cried, her eyes welling up with bloody tears.  
  
D unlocked the bondage. Morgan slumped forward, her body still repairing the damage that Anne and the others had inflicted to it. Automatically, he caught the vampire. Morgan was sobbing softly, bloody tears trickling down her cheeks.  
  
"I have to go after her. I can't let her get away. I'm not her weapon . . ." Morgan babbled as D held her.  
  
D looked around, uncertain on how to act. Her blood scent was strong and her body was firm and supple at once. Her skin was cool beneath his finger tips, her body pressed against his.  
  
Oddly, she was affecting him more than Circe had with all of her skilled caresses and bloody kisses.  
  
"You're too injured to go after her. Yin-Xi would only kill you," D stated as he gently set her to her feet.  
  
Morgan moved her hair to cover herself. As D watched, she briskly wiped the tears from her eyes and collected herself. She turned her back to him, her legs wobbling slightly as she did. Her back, buttocks, and upper thighs were covered in cris-crossing whip lashes that were sealing as D watched.  
  
"That chick kicked my ass as if it was nothing. She didn't even get a scratch on her and she beat the living shit out of me. It was like she wasn't even trying," Morgan stated tonelessly, her face marred by a scowl.  
  
D said, "Come, I'm going after Circe. You can't stay here."  
  
"Well, I'm coming with you," Morgan retorted, spinning around to face him, her chin set in a stubborn line.  
  
D met her golden eyes and simply nodded.  
  
They had to find Circe before she attacked Lichpin.  
  
******  
  
"Fucking bitch."  
  
Those two words, over and over again. As soon as D had gotten Morgan back to her vehicle, she had started the curse as a mantra. He watched as her hands trembled with impotent anger as she searched through her armory for just the right weapons.  
  
Truthfully, he loathed the idea of using firearms on a vampire. Most of the time it was a waist of time and money. However, Morgan tended toward more destructive weaponry; destructive enough to make Lelia Markus blink in surprise.  
  
D respectively turned his back as Morgan showered. She had surprised D with the small shower unit installed in her vehicle. It seemed to have everything. Even the blood storage unit that kept it at a precise 98.6 degrees. Her whole world was wrapped up in this armored relic of old.  
  
"Why don't you take a peek? I mean, it's not like you've haven't seen it before. Hell, you even held her. Don't tell me you don't want to look. Hell, join her. I don't think she'd mind too much. I think she likes you, D. But then again, women do sort of fall for you left and right, at least with this one you don't have to worry about ripping out her throat," Left Hand provoked, snickering as he did.  
  
D ignored the parasite as it continued, "Strong vampire in distress. Circe messed her up really good. She needs a strong shoulder and a hard body, don't you think, D? Or you might have to kill her. What's she going to do after Circe's dead? No reason to hunt her kind anymore. Could you kill her D?"  
  
D gripped his hand into a fist, cutting the symbiote off. He loathed the fact that it could voice most of the facts in his head. Left Hand knew him that well and seemed to enjoy taunting and tempting him with things he'd never take. Loved showing him what he was and what he'd never be as well as what lines he could cross. D hated him for that at times and was thankful at others.  
  
Sometimes, whether it knew it or not, reminded D of why he did what he did in the first place.  
  
Between Morgan's cursing and the gentle roar of the shower, D lost himself in thought.  
  
The village.   
  
Giles. Shannon. Donovan.   
  
They were in danger.  
  
They were wasting time. He should have left Morgan and gone after Circe. He had angered Circe by killing three members of Belle Morte and from his experience with other Nobles, she wasn't going to take the insult lightly. She'd take it out on the village that hired him.  
  
He was about to leave when Morgan placed her hand on his shoulder. He turned to see the vampire standing there, dressed in a black tank top and a pair of pants that had pockets placed at every conceivable angle. She had a shoulder holster with an unfamiliar pistol. It wasn't as heavy or clumsy as the guns that were popular in this time. She had a knife tucked into her boot. Strapped to her back was a long, slender wooden sword. Sharp enough to cut human skin and balanced just like a metal sword. A sword that had died ages ago with the culture that had created it.  
  
"Fucking bitch," Morgan hissed, her hands busy with the task of braiding her wet hair.  
  
"You've already established that, honey," Left Hand commented as Morgan flicked her braid off her shoulder.  
  
D told her, "We're wasting time. Circe's probably already attacked the village."  
  
"For her sake, I hope she hasn't," Morgan hissed, her eyes glowing with a furious light.  
  
******  
  
Circe was furious. The village was empty. The villagers had taken refuge and she couldn't find them.   
  
  
  
The redhead screamed her displeasure at the world, her power whipping around her like a wild storm. Windows shattered, doors rattled, and wooden planks were yanked off their foundations in her wake. Her eyes were glowing like unholy coals: fire bright.  
  
Beside her was Yin-Xi, calmly stood beside her sire as Circe had her tantrum. The Asian vampire's hair blew around her face as she impassively watched. Circe screamed louder, shouting up to the sky as she shattered a rooftop.  
  
"Where the hell are they, Yin-Xi?" Circe snarled, facing her servant.  
  
Yin-Xi serenely answered, "The hunter is the best money can buy, My Lady. He is experienced in handling these matters. He probably has them hiding scattered around the countryside."   
  
  
  
Circe snarled again, gnashing her fangs. She placed her hands on her curvy hips and stomped her foot. Yin-Xi remained impassive, her hand resting on her sword.  
  
The two stood in silence for countless moments. In the distance, Circe heard glass falling to the ground from her tantrum, tinkling like bells. She heard the whines and agitated stomps of the cybernetic horses in the Livery Stable.  
  
She didn't hear the two silent sets of footsteps coming their way.  
  
A gunshot broke the silence as Circe's shoulder erupted in hot, blazing pain.  
  
She looked down at the bloody ruin of her bare shoulder as the jewel like flesh of the wound repaired itself. She looked up and smiled.  
  
Her wayward child was standing there with the dhampire.  
  
******  
  
Morgan lowered her pistol. It was her old service pistol. The Glock 17 with its high-powered .9mm rounds and its illegal clip that held 17 bullets instead of the regular 13. The one she had when Circe stripped everything from her only to damn her. Morgan found the irony hilarious.  
  
"You shouldn't have done that," D reprimanded her, his pale blue eyes narrowed as he glanced down at her.  
  
Morgan shrugged and replied, "Hey, I wanted her attention."  
  
"You have succeeded in getting it," D stated as Circe looked at them with those burning crimson eyes.  
  
Morgan smirked and said in a soft voice, "Oh, I'm not done yet."  
  
Circe's hair blew around her as the Noble gathered her power. She called out, "Kirsten, are you going to join me?"  
  
"How about no and go fuck yourself, you blood sucking bitch," Morgan suggested cheerfully, flipping her sire the Bird.  
  
Beside her, D made a sound resembling a groan. Morgan wondered if he ever laughed. Or smiled even. She found herself wanting to survive this just so she could find out. For curiosity's sake.  
  
Circe laughed and replied, "Since you two slaughtered my Belle Morte, I'm going to use you to replace them. True, I'm going to have to find another witch and werewolf, but I believe I can break you two. Besides, I'm trading up from Swan and Anne in more than just aesthetic beauty."  
  
"Fucking bitch," Morgan growled as she took to the air, diving toward Circe's cackling form. She drew the bokken from its sheath on her back. She angled it with the point down, aiming right between the bitch's lopsided tits.  
  
******  
  
D drew his sword as Yin-Xi drew hers. The Chinese vampire stood there, watching him thoughtfully, strands of her raven hair blowing across her doll like features. The steel gleamed in the pale moonlight as they faced each other.  
  
To his surprise, Yin-Xi bowed her head respectfully.  
  
D returned the gesture. They rose together and started to circle each other. Their steps were feather light and in perfect unison with one and another. D watched Yin-Xi, searching for movements that would hint at the direction she would attack. D noted that she was doing the same.  
  
She lunged first. Both of her blades spun through the air gracefully, singing as they did. D dodged the movement and countered both of them with his longer sword. The sound of steel scraping steel filled the air as they looked at each other before springing apart.  
  
The second pass, D was the instigator. She had to use both of her swords to block his attack. She spun out of the way, sliced with her left hand, and pivoted back to strike again with her right.   
  
D countered by shoving up her left wrist with his left hand and used his sword to block her right. He jumped back. Yin-Xi followed, taking to the air and spinning down at D with a fierce kick. He dodged the blow with a spin and struck back with his sword.  
  
D angled it at the hollow of her throat. Yin-Xi looked at him with endless sloe eyes, her hair falling around her face. She settled to her knees, tilted her head up toward him, arching her throat, and offered her swords up to D.  
  
"You won, Hunter. My life, as it is, is yours," she said in her serene voice.  
  
D took her swords from her and planted them into the ground. He studied her offered throat as it rested against his blade. She closed her eyes and clinched her fists against her thighs, waiting for D to finish it.  
  
Circe's wild laughter broke the honorable combat. Both vampire and dhampire turned to look. Something like hatred flashed through Yin-Xi's eyes as she looked at her sire.  
  
"She has no honor. She abuses her power and is sick," Yin-Xi hissed as Circe laughingly dodged Morgan's blows. The blond vampire was getting more and more flustered. She was getting clumsy, her anger getting the better of her.  
  
D asked, "Why do you serve her?"  
  
Yin-Xi closed her eyes, bloody tears escaping them. "Because I wasn't strong enough to fight her. Not like Morgan with her anger and brash ways."  
  
Suddenly, Morgan screamed as Circe's power crashed upon the blond vampire. Morgan fell to the ground. Circe walked over to Morgan, the air shimmering around her. She projected the energy like a weapon at the blond. Morgan arched up with a cry, her fingers digging into the dirt around her.  
  
D withdrew Yin-Xi's swords from the ground. He handed them back to the vampire. She had honor. He couldn't kill her. She represented everything his father stood for; she just didn't have the power to escape her situation and yet she kept her honor in spite of it. He had to respect her for that.  
  
"Take your life up again, Yin-Xi. Strike back against her. Don't allow her to strip your honor any more than she already has," D told her as Yin-Xi took her swords with a determined look.  
  
Yin-Xi hissed, "I won't allow her to destroy another's life."  
  
"Then help me kill her," D stated, looking down at her.  
  
Yin-Xi bowed again, a full bow this time. She rose to her slight height and looked up at D. She replied, "My blades are yours until you see fit."  
  
"Thank you," D replied as he brought his sword up again and rushed at Circe.  
  
******  
  
Morgan screamed as pure agony ripped through her body. She arched her body, trying to escape the pain. She glared at Circe as she continued to rip more power through Morgan.  
  
At the corner of her eyes, Morgan saw D and Yin-Xi rush at Circe.  
  
Circe picked up Morgan's discarded bokken. With a leering grin at Morgan, she spun around. She thrust out with a snarl.  
  
Yin-Xi's eyes widened as she gave a tiny cry. She bowed over the wooden blade, holding it. Her raven hair fell around her face as she jerked back. The sword had impaled the vampire's heart. Yin-Xi's swords clattered to the ground. Blood trickled from her rosette mouth as she looked up at Circe.  
  
"You betrayed me, you little slut," Circe hissed as she twisted the blade, making Yin-Xi arch in pain.  
  
Yin-Xi managed to rasp, "I am free of your dishonor."  
  
"Pretty words from such a pretty mouth. Too bad I had to kill you, but such disobedience needs to be punished," Circe purred as she jerked the sword from Yin-Xi's heart.  
  
Morgan stood up as Circe turned to D, who had caught Yin-Xi. He held the dying vampire in his arms as he glared up at Circe. Circe laughed as she shook Yin-Xi's blood from the wooden sword.  
  
"Sad that I killed her? Why, because she had honor?" Circe laughed as she threw her head back. Yin-Xi's beautiful swords with their silk sashes gleamed in the moonlight. Morgan studied them thoughtfully, almost hypnotized by them.  
  
D lay Yin-Xi's petrified body on the ground. He had closed the Chinese vampire's eyes. He bowed his head respectfully before turning back to Circe, his own sword drawn.  
  
Circe laughed as she hit him with a wave of her power. To Morgan's surprise, D didn't fall. Instead, he met it head on. It whipped his wavy raven hair back and his eyes gleamed like jewels. He continued to slowly advance at Circe.  
  
"Your time is over. Go back to the darkness that which you crawled out of," D growled at Circe.  
  
Morgan dove for the swords.   
  
"Hey, D, remember, the nympho fuck bitch is mine," Morgan hissed as she grasped a sword in each hand. She grinned fiercely as she lunged at Circe.  
  
The Noble turned to face her, but she couldn't deflect Morgan's lunge. The sword in Morgan's left hand went through Circe's stomach. The vampire jerked back, her red hair falling around her. She put her pale hands on each side of the blade to force it out.  
  
Morgan stood to her full height and twisted the blade just as Circe had done. She smirked as she met the vampire's garnet eyes. Circe looked at her with a wide-eyed look of shock. Morgan felt a sick thrill because of it, making her body tingle.  
  
"You stole everything from me. My life. My baby. The man I love. Then you damned me to this Hell. Well, Circe, payback's a bitch," Morgan said in a soft voice, almost giggling.  
  
Circe cried, "I gave you immortality!"  
  
"I didn't want immortality! You just wanted me to be your newest toy and then when you got tired of me, your weapon. Well, turnabout is fair play, isn't it?" Morgan asked sweetly.  
  
Then she kissed Circe, tasting the cool blood on the vampire's lips. A kiss of death. The kiss that had damned her eons ago.  
  
"Do you know why I changed my name to Morgan?" Morgan asked in that same saccharine voice.  
  
D watched, his intense eyes narrowed with worry.  
  
Circe spat, "I will have you!"  
  
Morgan twisted the blade again, causing Circe to scream. She continued, "Chris had a thing for Celtic mythology. There was only one of the Celtic goddesses I could remember. She was the Morrigan, their Goddess of War and Death, and I swore to myself that I would be your death."  
  
With that, she slashed with her right hand. She felt the blade cut through flesh and bone. Morgan watched as Circe's head fell to the ground. She drew the blade out, causing the body to fall with it.  
  
She stood there, looking at the dead body.  
  
It was over. She had done it.  
  
Strangely, she felt empty and lost.  
  
She didn't feel that much better. Chris was still gone. The baby was still dead. She couldn't live her life again. And she was still a vampire.  
  
All she had done was get her revenge and end her one purpose.  
  
She fell to her knees, sobbing.  
  
******  
  
D knelt down beside Morgan as she started to weep. He gently wrapped his arms around her as she cried. She cried for Chris. She cried for the baby she had lost. She wept hopelessly.  
  
"I killed her and I don't feel that much better," Morgan gasped, clinging to D.  
  
D softly pushed her away to look at her at arms' length. He reached out to brush a bloody tear from her face. He looked at her intensely as he held her shoulders.  
  
He told her, "You protected someone else from what happened to you. You couldn't save yourself, but think of all the others like you. You saved others from the pain you once felt. That is worth something."  
  
"But it still hurts," Morgan whimpered.  
  
D sighed, "And it will continue to hurt, but the pain will soften. I'm sure Chris would want that."  
  
Morgan flung herself in D's arms again, clinging to him desperately. D let her, gently stroking her hair. After a while she quieted and her grip on him lessened, but yet they still held each other.  
  
She looked up at him with wide eyes the color of honey. D blinked as her hand reached out to caress his cheek. She tilted her face up toward him as she watched him, her lips slightly parted.  
  
D turned away from the kiss and gently moved Morgan's hand away.  
  
"You're acting in grief," he told her softly.  
  
Morgan gave a shaky laugh, "I bet a lot of women do that to you."  
  
"Babe, you have no idea," Left Hand snorted. D closed his fist over it.  
  
D stood up, bringing Morgan with him. "Come, the sun'll be up soon. You need to find shelter."  
  
"D, the bounty's yours. Thank you for helping me. For everything," Morgan said softly as they walked away.  
  
Together.  
  
******  
  
Shannon was beaming at D. At Circe's petrified head laying on her desk. The same head that Donny kept gleefully poking with a pencil.   
  
  
  
The rest of Belle Morte's bodies had been deposed of. For some strange reason, D himself had disposed of Yin-Xi's body. Not that Shannon minded, it was one less thing for her to do.  
  
The town was back to normal and starting to thrive again.   
  
All because of the man before her.  
  
"You did exactly what I asked. You saved us, thank you," Shannon said with a bright smile.  
  
Donovan grinned and gave D the thumbs up. "Man, that kicked ass!"  
  
"Donny!" Shannon scolded, reaching out to smack her brother upside the head. Then she turned back toward D. She reached into her safe under her desk and brought out the bounty. She pushed it toward D.  
  
She smiled and sighed, "I wish it was more but . . ."  
  
"It's fine. I'm glad I could help," D replied as he took the box and tucked it under his left arm.  
  
Shannon asked, "Are you going to stay here for a little while? Mr. Wyndom-Price wishes you would. As do Donny and me."  
  
"Cuz you kick ass," Donovan said approvingly.  
  
Shannon snapped, "Language!" She smacked Donovan upside the head again.  
  
D shook his head, causing his raven hair to fly around him. He answered, "I have to leave. There are other places that need my assistance."   
  
"Well, thank you again and take care," Shannon brightly said with a grin.  
  
******  
  
A Year Later  
  
Night was falling as D rode his horse hard. He was approaching another town and would stay to get rested for the night. Then he would leave again. He was heading toward Western Europe, toward what use to be England, which had now fused with France due to the war.  
  
He was sitting at a rear table at the local inn, in full view of the bar and the door. Sounds of conversation and music swirled around him. Soon enough, the conversations' topics turned to the tall, silent man in black sitting alone. Strangely, no one picked him out as a dhampire and D was grateful for it. However, there was the familiar buzz of him being a vampire hunter as well as the speculation of his skill.  
  
The innkeeper's daughter, a pretty young woman with curly chestnut brown hair and sparkling hazel eyes, delivered D's meal to him. She idly chatted with him, girlishly twirling one of her curls around her finger. She bent down to pick up D's tankard to refill it, giving him a view of her nicely curved hind end and the swell of her breasts as she stood back up.  
  
She grinned, winked, and turned back to the bar, giving her rump a saucy shake as she did.  
  
D was oblivious to it.  
  
He knew the girl wanted him. Almost every town he encountered a woman such as her, who's scent of lust perfumed the air as she tried to seduce him. And at almost every town D gently turned down each girl that went through the all too familiar ritual. For their own sakes.   
  
As he had told Circe, he would not endanger the life of an innocent human in return for a few fleeting moments of physical pleasure.  
  
D sensed someone behind him. Vampire. His hand itched toward his sword as he remained perfectly still.  
  
"Man, what a little slut. 'Can I get you a drink? Let me bend down so you can see my tits and ass,'" a familiar female's voice said behind D.  
  
Strangely enough, D felt his spirits rise as he turned around to face Morgan.  
  
Morgan grinned at him before rolling her eyes. "Can we say desperate?"  
  
D asked, "What are you doing here?"  
  
Morgan rolled her eyes and sighed, "Not, 'Hi Morgan, it's good to see you again.' but, 'What are you doing here?' Sheesh, D, most women like a guy who's quiet, but you need to be a bit more outspoken." Then she sat in the chair across from him with a friendly smile. She rested her elbows on the table and then rested her chin on her fists as she studied D.  
  
D blinked. He had a feeling that Morgan would always bemuse him, whenever they crossed paths. While D chose to meet the darkness in his life with quiet, dignified stoicism, Morgan met it head on with a rebellious sarcasm and a tongue sharper than her fangs. D figured that everyone dealt with their lives in their own way. He had his and Morgan had hers, even though Morgan constantly confused him.  
  
Morgan then answered his original question. "Passing through. There's a coven of witches summoning demons up north that I'm going to take a hand at. There are worse things than vampires I noticed. Like slutty waitresses."  
  
The girl had returned with D's cider. She gave Morgan a cross look. D noted that she didn't bend to show off her assets again. Morgan waved cheerfully at the girl. The girl spun away, her curly hair swinging angrily around her.  
  
D asked, "Was that necessary?"  
  
Morgan chuckled and tapped the side of her nose. She answered, "Hey, if I hadn't have she would have tried to climb you like a tree and ride you like a stallion in a few hours. I saved you from being molested, and let me tell you being molested isn't as fun as it sounds."  
  
D blinked again, torn between being confused and smiling at her rapid fire quips.  
  
He managed to say, "Thank you, I think."  
  
"Hey, maybe she wants to jump you instead!" Left Hand offered jollity, breaking off into hoarse guffaws.  
  
Morgan rolled her eyes and retorted, "D, your parasite is a real pervert."  
  
"I know. I apologize," D replied, feeling heat rising to his cheeks. Was he blushing? He was blushing. That was an odd sensation. He ducked his head down over his meal, thankful for the wide brim of his hat.  
  
Morgan asked, "So, where are you off to?"  
  
  
  
"England. There's a Noble there with a high price on his head. I've already been contacted as well as several other groups of hunters," D explained as he looked back up at her, sure that his cheeks had cooled and the blush had left them.  
  
Morgan stood up and walked to his side. D blinked as he looked up at her. She smiled down at him and winked. "I've got to go. Daylight will be coming soon and I have to get as far as I can before the sun comes up. I had to see you though, once I knew you were here."  
  
D's eyes widened at her confession. He looked into her eyes and she into his. Things seemed to freeze for a moment between them.  
  
He remembered what Morgan felt like in his arms. How she looked at him without fear or repulsion. She didn't taunt him for his heritage or demand that he give into the vampiric part of him.  
  
He knew that they would meet again. That much was certain. They were heading in the same direction, just taking separate paths. Those paths would cross again and again. He realized that he would look forward to seeing her, hearing her laugh.  
  
"I wish you luck," D told her softly, breaking the moment. He realized if he hadn't had said anything, then that kiss that he stopped in Lichpin would have taken place right now. Morgan still needed time to heal, to let go and put the past behind her.  
  
Luckily, time was something they both had.  
  
Morgan grinned lopsidedly at him and took a step back. "Well, until next time, D." With a tiny wave, she disappeared into the den of the crowd, leaving D alone.   
  
As, always, he ultimately was.  
  
However, knowing that from time to time that someone would break the lonely path he tread made him smile just the tiniest bit.  
  
"Until we meet again, Kirsten," D whispered as he watched her long banner of blond hair fade away.  
  
Left Hand snorted, "You know, you could call her back. No need to torture yourself like that. It might be a hundred years until you see her again, but then again, what's a hundred years to a guy that's still a . . ."  
  
D closed his fingers over his palm and started to eat.  
  
May you put yourself at peace, Morgan. I hope to see you again.  
  
The End! 


End file.
